


No Strings Attached

by the_albatross, veronicasanders



Series: Just Friends [1]
Category: RuPaul's Drag Race (US) RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Dorms, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Friends With Benefits, Friends to Lovers, Semi-Public Sex, Smut, lesbian alternate universe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-19
Updated: 2021-01-09
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:06:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 33,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27100924
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_albatross/pseuds/the_albatross, https://archiveofourown.org/users/veronicasanders/pseuds/veronicasanders
Summary: New life, new university, new friends...what more could Alaska ask for?Following the end of her relationship with Jinkx, Alaska has decided to pack up and move to a new college...on the other side of the country. Nothing like a bit of space to get over a break up, right? As she settles in for her new life, Alaska must navigate her new surroundings and of course, her new roommates with some very strong personalities of their own.A collab with the amazingly patient VeronicaSandersThis series is going to have two separate stories. The Willaska chapters will be labeled 'No Strings Attached' and the Bitney chapters will be labeled 'Off Limits,' and both will be labeled with the series tag, 'Just Friends.'
Relationships: Courtney Act | Shane Jenek/Bianca Del Rio, Willam Belli/Alaska Thunderfuck 5000
Series: Just Friends [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1978078
Comments: 44
Kudos: 21





	1. Chapter 1

_Here’s to a new life_ , Alaska thought as she paused in front of her new dorm building. It was simple, modern-looking, but it felt like so much more than that. Here she could start over and forget about the mess she left behind after her last semester of classes. The crying, the loaded silence...the isolation.

 _No,_ she argued, shaking her head before resuming her path up to the open doors, _I am not going to think about that now. I am_ **_not_ ** _going to ruin today._

The lobby was huge and busy. Tables were lined up, only three, surprisingly, by last name and absolutely crowded with people waiting to receive their room assignment and key. Already most of the staff looked fairly put on. At least four of them were running around, shouting directions, asking for updates and trying to answer students’ questions all at once. It was chaos...and Alaska was absolutely excited by it.

As she took her place in the queue, she pulled her two suitcases in as tightly as possible. All too easily she could see someone tripping over them and hurting themselves...or making a mess of all the new clothes she bought just for this semester. She was trying to reinvent herself. That’s what people normally do after an exhausting breakup, right? Perhaps not move across the country but they treat themselves. She went the whole nine yards; new clothes, new hair, _new school_. And if she had to say...she thought she looked pretty damn good. The blonde suited her and while the clothes would still take some getting used to; they were cute. She could definitely follow through with this.

Steadily the line began to move forward. Staring out at the crowd in the meantime, Alaska watched frenzied students in amusement. Some were frazzled, others content and relaxed, some dead tired and one or two...hungover? _Typical college students_ , Alaska noted with a smile.

“Hey!” someone shouted in irritation.

That caught Alaska’s attention. It wasn’t hard to figure out what had happened; the one who cried out had just had her foot run over by the luggage being dragged by the newest arrival. Some flashy girl in a shimmery dress and the shortest hemline Alaska had even seen off anything that wasn’t considered lingerie, _on Move-In day!_

“Yeah, sorry,” she replied back, not even turning around. _Doubtful._

She was something, Alaska observed with a disdainful look. Honey-colored locks tussled into messy, beachy waves, fell across her tanned shoulders as she briskly cut through the crowd towards one of the check in tables. With every movement you could see the subtle toning of her legs and ass, all highlighted by the skimpy garment and skyhigh heels that seemed to walk on air. She was the kind of girl used to getting what she wanted, when she wanted it, and with no hassle. This was obvious in the way she marched straight up to one of the volunteers and introduced herself, “Hi, I’m Willam Belli. I’m in 414, can I please get my keys?”

The woman looked at her as incredulously as Alaska would have. But clearly she had more patience than most as she calmly pointed out, “Miss, there’s a line.”

This girl-Willam-glanced back at the queue beside her and replied, “Oh, I know. But these guys don’t mind, do you?” A wink was sent in the direction of some of the closest guys, jocks of course, and immediately Alaska knew that Willam had won. They all folded so easily and conceded their place in line to her. Turning back to the volunteer with a triumphant, smug little grin, she repeated, “Willam Belli. In 414.”

 _What a fucking psycho,_ Alaska thought to herself as she watched the scene played out, _Lord help her roommates._

Having received her key, Willam spun herself around to go lay claim to her dorm room. She was almost out of sight and out of Alaska’s mind when a high-pitched squeal cut through the crowd.

“Bill!” came the excited call.

The owner of the voice was an ecstatically grinning little blonde girl practically bouncing on her heels as she raced through the lobby. Her eyes were crinkled with pure joy and her smile was warm enough to melt ice. _Probably running after her boyfriend - oh, wait. Not quite,_ Alaska soon found out. 

Much to Alaska’s, and most everyone else’s, shock, this girl dove straight into the arms of Willam, damn near knocking her over in the process. “Courtney, you bitch, this is fucking Prada!” despite the intent of feigning irritation, even Willam couldn’t hold back a wide toothy grin of her own. She settled for impatiently smoothing out her dress as Courtney fluttered her lashes and simpered, “I’m sorry, I just missed you. It was so boring here, spending the whole summer without you!”

_Aussie...cute._

Willam laughed at this, pinching Courtney’s sides until a happy little squeal escaped her. “Have the other cunts arrived yet?” She asked, grasping the handle of one of her two suitcases.

“Nope,” Courtney beamed back, sticking her tongue out for just a moment. “You’re the first cunt.”

“Thank god. Now we can get settled and leave the other room for them.” Rolling her eyes, she added in, “I hope they aren’t boring assholes like last semester.”

“Omigod Bill, stop,” Courtney giggled, then glanced over to the pair of suitcases next to Willam. “Is this everything you’ve got?”

“Ha! You wish. My car is crammed full. Actually, make yourself useful and go grab some shit.” She tossed her keys to Courtney and grabbed the other suitcase, throwing in a casual, “Car’s out front. One of those spaces with the little blue sign.”

 _Of course she’d park in a handicapped spot,_ Alaska groaned to herself.

Even Courtney was not as forgiving of that action. _“Bill,”_ she scolded.

“I’ll move it later,” Willam promised with an airy smile. “Everything else was just too far!”

“You’re the worst. Absolute _worst_ ,” Courtney shot back with a grin. Pressing a sloppy kiss to Willam’s cheek, she said, “Good thing I love you though.”

With that the pair separated and by then Alaska was fourth in line. She shook her head as she tried to push those two far from her mind. Nothing she needed to worry about now, she told herself. With any luck, her new roommates would be quiet or at the very least, fucking _sane_.

After a few more minutes, Alaska was handed her key but as she looked at the accompanying card her heart sank to the pit of her stomach. _414._

_Fuck!_

_******_

“You serious about these curtains, Bill?” Courtney asked, one eyebrow raised, holding up the fuschia sequined curtains that she’d found on South Street. She looked at them doubtfully then handed them back to their owner. They were deliciously tacky and Willam absolutely adored them.

“Yes!” Willam argued, unable to believe Courtney couldn’t see how absolutely perfect they were for their room. “They’re amazing.”

“Sure…” Courtney laughed, continuing to help her unpack.

“Listen, just because you have no creativity or sense of fun-”

“Excuse you, I am plenty creative, you wanker! It’s just that some people like their bedrooms, where they sleep, to be, you know, _soothing_.”

“And you’re totally entitled to your boring opinions. But I-” Willam stopped abruptly as a figure rushed past by their propped open door. “Uh, hello! May we help you?”

Willam swore she heard a sigh before the girl appeared again. Tall, platinum blonde, a slender, willowy body to die for - which appeared to be news to her by the way she slouched, face almost totally obscured by giant sunglasses.

“Hi, I’m assigned to this apartment,” she droned flatly.

“And you were just planning to creep in without saying ‘hi’?” Willam challenged, delighted when her pale cheeks reddened slightly. A faint smile was curling on the edges of her lips as she added in, “That’s nice.”

“Omigod, Bill, shut up!” Courtney exclaimed, elbowing her in the ribs before bounding towards the door and pulling the new girl into a hug. “Hi, I’m Courtney. That’s Willam. You can ignore pretty much everything she says.”

Trying to politely weasel her way out of the unwanted hug, the new girl replied, “Um, hi. I’m Alaska.”

“Alaska! What a cool name! Is that where you’re from?” Courtney’s eyes shone with genuine, well-meaning curiosity while Willam’s gave a dramatic roll. Not that she really expected anything less from Courtney but the whole Nice Girl routine got to be real tiresome, real fast, especially when it was with _everyone_ she met.

Alaska’s nose scrunched up a little as she answered, “No, I’m from a little town in Pennsylvania-”

“Really!? So’s Bill! What a small world.”

“Philly isn’t a small town, dipshit,” Willam grumbled.

Finally a smile began to form as Alaska stifled a laugh, adding in politely, “Nice to meet you guys. I’m just gonna go put my things down…”

“Yeah, of course!” Courtney said eagerly, “We’re gonna head to the quad for some lunch in a bit, will you join us?”

Alaska paused, thinking it over for a moment, then mumbled out a non-committal, “Oh. Yeah, maybe.”

“Courtney, when you’re done licking Alaska’s asshole, I could really use a hand with these suitcases,” Willam said, a hand on her hip. She was starting to feel antsy.

“Yes, your majesty.” Courtney stuck her tongue out at Willam, then turned back to Alaska to add, “You should really come! We can show you around and get to know each other.”

“Sounds great.”

 _Hard to believe_ **_that_ ** _was sincere,_ Willam thought.

*******

Somehow Courtney managed to convince Alaska to join them and she ended up having a better time at lunch than she thought. The food certainly helped but she still was struggling with her growing sour mood. She was starting to have second thoughts about coming here, wondering if her move was really the right decision. It all seemed so busy and crowded here but she tried to tell herself that it was just because it was Move-In Day. _Once classes start and everyone gets into their own routine, it’ll be quieter and more spacious_...she hoped.

Willam and Courtney chatted away easily enough but they already knew each other from previous semesters. They tried to include Alaska in the conversation as much as possible but they had their own little in-jokes and she couldn’t help but feel like an outsider at times.

 _It’s all part of making new friends,_ she told herself, _And I have to live with them for the rest of the school year. I_ **_have_ ** _to make this work._

But all she wanted to do right now was just crawl into bed and nap for a good long while so she didn’t have to think about everything.

By the time the three arrived back from lunch, the fourth roommate had finally arrived. They found her sprawled out along the couch with an arm folded over eyes and the traces of an annoyed frown already on her lips. The second she spoke, Alaska felt a growing sense of dread form in the pit of her stomach.

“Great...I’m living with a bunch of bottle blonde bitches.”

The comment rattled her more than she’d like. Despite her initial thoughts that it looked undetectable, at least for now, she was starting to worry her decision to bleach her hair just looked ridiculously fake and stupid.

Her trepidation deepened as the girl sat up and asked, “So who’s hideous leopard duvet is that?”

_Oh, god, this year is going to be a nightmare, isn’t it?_

But while Courtney broke into a case of the giggles, Willam slung an arm around her shoulders and spoke, “Calm down, bitch. Some of us are garbage pails with hideous taste. We’re still people.”

She hadn’t realized it was so obvious she was getting irritated.

But one thing she noticed, for those few brief seconds Willam was leaning into her, was that she actually felt sort of comfortable. At least more than when Courtney had tried to hug her right out of the gate. But that was neither here nor there. Her focus was largely on the way Courtney seemed determined to ask the new girl-Bianca, she found out soon enough- any question that came to mind.

It was kind of sickening actually. In the same way as when you stuff your face with your favorite sweet, then five minutes too late you realize you’re way too full and the candy suddenly tastes like it’s choking you. Definitely something like that.

Willam and Alaska shared a look of mutual disgust but much to Willam’s surprise, it looked like Bianca was slowly starting to break. Strange, she expected someone that abrasive (much like herself) to have held out longer. But Courtney did have a sort of magic charm. It worked on her two years ago after all, and it seems this new girl would be no exception.

A few more questions, some teasing, and Bianca relented enough to at least partially apologize for her snarky comments. “So. I had kind of a shitty morning. I was actually about to jump in the shower. I’ll probably be in a better mood after that.”

That was probably the best they could hope to get out of her. “Well, that’s a relief,” Willam quipped, earning a short, snort of a laugh from Alaska.

 _It sounds kind of nice to hear her laugh,_ Willam realized.

An agreeable smile came to rest on Bianca’s face as she admitted, “I deserved that.” There was a slight nod to her head as she added in, “So I guess I’ll go...do that.”

She took one last glance at the group before standing up and walking back towards her bedroom. Despite the initial impression she gave off, Willam felt she was something of a kindred spirit. A toothy grin appeared on her lips as she stated all too loudly, “What a cunt.”

She would swear she heard a soft chuckle echoing from the hallway and that just made her smile even brighter. This girl was definitely going to be some fun. The joke however, went over Courtney’s head and quick enough there was a light slap on her arm as Courtney scolded her, “Bill!”

Willam rolled her eyes, grin still present, as she shook her head at Courtney’s obliviousness. Continuing to huff, Courtney added in, “I like her.”

“Clearly,” Willam teased, tickling her sides. “Why don’t you go make my bed?”

“Make your own bed, dickhead!” Courtney shrieked, giving her a playful shove.

Even still, Courtney eventually relented to _helping_ Willam as she made her bed, it did go faster with two people after all. Following that, they spent the better part of the afternoon organizing all of Willam’s extensive wardrobe as much as possible. Space was limited so they had to make due with what was available. Even with Courtney offering up an extra drawer to use, it still wasn’t quite enough.

As the pair got on with that, Alaska took the chance to do some more unpacking of her own. There never had been much of a process to her organizing, but Alaska always _knew_ where everything was, or at least where it should be. Organization didn’t mean much to her, she’d often forget any pattern she’d set up anyway, but as long as there was a designated spot, she could find things as she needed them. 

Although, as she looked over Bianca’s clean and hyper categorized belongings with a skeptical gaze, she couldn’t help but wonder if she shouldn’t try to make a bit more of an effort. At least for right now. Their room looked almost like one of those before and after pictures you would see in an ad for a cleaning service. Everything Bianca owned had its own space, hell, it was even labeled, and Alaska’s...well, it made sense to her and that’s what mattered, right?

However, when Bianca came back from her shower, Alaska did promise to keep her side contained. It was the least she could do after seeing a flash of alarm on Bianca’s face as she took a closer look at Alaska’s half of the room.

“You fucking better,” she warned, her smile taking out any bite to the remark.

Alaska couldn’t help but laugh. Slowly but surely, Bianca was starting to grow on her. All of her roommates were, she realized. It still felt weird but in time she was sure she could settle into a new norm. For now, she just had to push herself along until things fell into place.

******

A few minutes later, Willam and Courtney burst into the room to inquire how she and Bianca were getting on.

“How are you ladies doing?” Courtney asked brightly, “Bonding?”

“Oh, yeah,” Bianca quipped, shifting around from her place at her desk, “Our periods are already in sync.” She twirled the curling iron in her hand at almost the same speed at which her eyes rolled.

Alaska laughed, unable to help herself. She was really starting to appreciate Bianca’s sense of humor.

Courtney found herself a place to sit on the floor, watching Bianca style her hair with interest, while Willam unceremoniously collapsed onto Alaska’s bed. A tired, muffled groan was heard from where she collapsed face first into the sheets. She played up her exhaustion as she rolled over with a great, strenuous effort but Alaska could see there was some truth behind her acting. Willam barely moved an inch after she turned over, even after Alaska scooted aside to give her more space.

“How disgustingly primal,” Willam spoke distractedly. Her eyes darted around the room with an air of suspicion as she inquired, “Is your room bigger than ours?”

Alaska looked at her with a certain degree of skepticism, because of course the rooms were the same size. If there were a difference, Willam would have already claimed the larger room, she had no doubt about that.

Turning to Courtney, she found her roommate had some sort of explanation for the inane question, “Bill’s pretty pissed about the closet space. I gave her one of my drawers, but…” she shrugged nonchalantly, nudging and pulling on Willam’s foot until there was a lighthearted kick in her direction, “Some people are just never satisfied.”

Thinking to herself for a second, Alaska found herself offering, “I have an extra drawer, too.”

It felt like all eyes were suddenly on her as a sense of self-consciousness began to creep in. She wasn’t entirely sure why she made the offer but she did have the space, she reasoned. Why let it go to waste?

Bianca, however, felt inclined to ask, gesturing to one of the jumbled piles of belongings sitting atop Alaska’s dresser as she did so, “You sure you don’t want to use that for some of the stuff that’s…”

“Nah, she can have it,” Alaska answered with a sweet but taunting smile. It’d be her good deed for the day.

Immediately, Willam started to perk back up. With a bit of careful maneuvering she might just be able to stuff the rest of her wardrobe into that extra drawer. But that wasn’t the only thing that left her cheerful, it was also that Alaska had _volunteered_ her extra space. Perhaps she was starting to warm up, after all. As her tired mind pondered over how to go about arranging everything, she heard Bianca asking, “So...not to be a wet blanket on all this delightful female bonding, but...where can a bitch find some decent vegetarian food around here?”

Glancing up to Bianca with a tilt to her head and a curious gaze, Courtney questioned, “You’re hungry?”

“No,” Bianca replied, all but rolling her eyes, “Just thought I’d buy some food and throw it at seagulls. Yes, I’m fucking hungry.”

Courtney and Alaska immediately broke out in a state of giggles but Willam was actually the one to find the strength to answer her, “Decent shit is mostly downtown...but edible? There’s the cafeteria next door, the salad bar over by the biology building, food court in the quad, the-”

“No, Bill,” Courtney interrupted, swatting lightly at Willam’s leg. “Let’s get something different. Something _better_.”

Sighing heavily, with an eye roll to boot, Willam propped herself up in order to get a better look at everyone, particularly Courtney. “Fine then, cunt,” she huffed, “Where do _you_ suggest we eat?”

Courtney sat silently for a moment, running through all the local dining options she could think of. Alaska was glad for this distraction. Despite being surrounded by her roommates, a growing wave of loneliness was starting to rise in the pit of her stomach. She wasn’t sure where this all was coming from but immediately she recognized that little could be done to push it away. She just wanted to be alone right now more than anything.

The three discussed some sort of idea Courtney proposed but Alaska was barely listening. She was trying to stall the negative emotions, at least until the others left, but she was far from succeeding. It only left her in a very distracted, half-aware state where she had to struggle just to recognize that someone was speaking to her.

“Alaska?” Willam asked, “You in?”

“Uh, I’m not really all that hungry,” Alaska declined as politely as she could. “You guys should go.”

Cocking her head to the side, Willam inquired doubtfully, “Are you sure?”

“Yeah,” Alaska lied, “I’m getting a little bit of a headache.”

Concerned, Courtney leapt to her feet and crowded Alaska with motherly intent, “Oh no! Do you need something? I have magnesium supplements. Or, vitamin b-complex. That’s great for headaches!”

“Or, if you want something that actually works,” Bianca muttered, “I got Tylenol and Advil…”

“I’ve got Vicodin,” Willam added in. “And weed.”

Touched but finding the attention far too smothering, Alaska declined with a simple, “Thanks guys, but I think I just need to lay down for a while.”

“Okay,” Courtney agreed, beginning to usher everyone out of the room, “We’ll leave you alone. Let us know if you want us to bring you back any food.”

“Thanks.”

Alaska watched gratefully as everyone slowly slipped out of the room. Only Willam spared one final glance back at her; one of vague skepticism, but kept any comments she might have had to herself. Now alone, Alaska waited patiently until she was sure everyone had left the apartment before pulling herself from the bed in order to run a hot bath. Usually a bit of self care would help but even as she soaked in the fragrant, bubble filled tub, she just felt miserable. Her mind wandered back to everything she left behind; the professors she adored, her friends...Jinkx. 

She missed her ex. So much more than she realized before and now they might as well have been on opposite sides of the galaxy with how far Alaska felt from her. She toyed with the idea of texting her, even opened up her contact information, but something in her prevented her from sending off even a simple ‘Hi.’

No, she was sure Jinkx must be busy too, settling in for the new semester. Alaska shouldn’t bother her right now. The best thing to do right now was just sit in the bath, try to relax, and failing that, just turn in for an early rest.

Yeah...at least then she could forget about her heartache...just for a little while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Link to chapter 1 in Off Limits- https://archiveofourown.org/works/27201197/chapters/66441575


	2. Chapter 2

It was just before 9 when Alaska finally managed to roll herself out of bed and stumble towards the kitchen. She might’ve slept longer if it hadn’t been for the most annoying bird chirping outside her window and the tantalizing scent of coffee tempting her into leaving her nice, warm blankets. She didn’t even pause at the bathroom first, just made her way straight into the kitchen in search of something to help her feel a little more awake and friendly.

Courtney was the first to notice her, sending a bright, beaming smile her way as she buttered a small stack of toast. “Good morning!” she greeted, “Are you feeling any better?”

A nod was all Alaska could think to give right now. Her sleep-addled mind was still struggling to make proper words.

“Want some smoothie?” Courtney offered as Alaska pulled out a seat at the kitchen’s island.

Bianca was quick to spin away from her pan of sizzling eggs in order to cut in with, “No one wants your gross smoothie!” Then zeroing in on Alaska, she warned, “Beware, Alaska. I saw her put _dates_ in that thing.”

“Shut up!” Courtney laughed, “Dates make it sweet.”

“You know what else would make it sweet? _Sugar.”_

“Yes, cupcake?” Courtney simpered, fluttering her lashes.

 _God, this is disgusting,_ Alaska thought, rubbing away the sleep from her eyes. _I stumbled into a fucking Rom-com._

“Is there coffee?” she inquired tiredly, “I thought I smelled coffee.”

“Yeah, help yourself.” Bianca gestured to a French press, then asked, “Do you want some eggs?”

Shaking her head politely, she replied, “No thanks,” and reached over to help herself to the steamy coffee.

With a nod, Bianca scraped two healthy portions onto the awaiting plates and sat down at the island with the others. She pushed one of the servings in front of Courtney.

“Thank you,” she chirped, passing Bianca some toast and licking the butter knife clean in the process.

“That’s disgusting,” Bianca said with an amused chuckle. 

Courtney giggled along, offering her a little shrug and a flutter of lashes, “I like to lick things.”

“Where’s Willam? Still asleep?” Alaska had definitely pegged her as the type to stay in bed all day. But at the moment, she would have welcomed anyone else in the room to distract from the sickeningly obvious flirting going on.

“No, she’s at the gym. Gotta keep it tight for her clients,” Courtney said, then when both Bianca and Alaska’s heads snapped up, realized that she’d probably made a serious faux pas, eyes widening. Trailing off, she mumbled, “Uh...I mean...”

“...‘Clients?’” Bianca repeated. Even Alaska felt herself snapping into a hyper-aware state as soon as she heard the word.

“Well…” Courtney trailed off with an uneasy smile.

“Courtney. Are we sharing an apartment with a _hooker_?!” Bianca pointed a fork at her.

“No!” she reassured her roommates, “No, not a hooker. She’s like…”

“Yeah?” Alaska found herself deeply curious, in spite of her usual desire to stay away from gossip.

“I’m not sure I should say. I mean, it’s not like a secret, but I just don’t feel like it’s my place to-“

“Well too late, bitch,” Bianca argued, “You brought it up. Now you have to tell us.”

“It’s not a big deal,” Courtney asserted. “She just like...video chats with guys and they buy her stuff.”

“So she’s a cam girl?” Bianca clarified, her tone sounding far from excited now.

Scratching the back of her head, Courtney replied with an unsure, “Um. Yeah?”

“Oh.”

Bianca shrugged and nonchalantly went back to her breakfast, but Alaska found her stomach twisting a bit. She didn’t really understand the intricacies of what Courtney described, but part of her worried about whether Willam was careful enough, safe enough. She shook her head slightly, taking a long sip of her coffee. Why was she fretting so much? Who was she, Willam’s mother? And then another thought, immediately shoved down before it had a chance to take root: Does she have a website?

Nope. She was not going to think about that. It was none of her business, she told herself. Any curiosity was simply because she never met a cam girl before.

And she left it as that, tuning into whatever Courtney and Bianca decided to discuss now.

When Willam returned from the gym, Courtney ran to the door to confess her slip up. “I’m so sorry, Bill,” she pouted. “I didn’t mean to spill, but it just came out. Are you mad?”

“Nah. I don’t give a fuck.” Willam flopped down on the sofa, skimpy workout clothes sticking to her, hair piled atop her head in a messy bun.

Alaska’s lips curled slightly into a disgusted frown. Who doesn’t shower immediately after working out? And now she was sitting on the sofa, getting her sweat all over the shared furniture? _Gross_ , Alaska thought, pulse quickening as a strange feeling crept into her chest.

Willam turned her head towards Alaska and gave her a sympathetic smile. “How you doin’, tiger? Feeling better today?”

“Mmhmm.” Alaska swallowed, feeling an uncomfortable heat creeping into her face.

“Awesome. Maybe you can come with us to the mall, then,” Willam added with a coy tilt of her head.

“Sure,” Alaska smiled at her, praying that the heat in her cheeks wasn’t visible to the others, hoping to deflect by adding drily, “Maybe you can shower first.”

“Ha! Well, look who’s out of her shell,” Willam laughed, standing up and whipping her top off, tossing Alaska a wink in the process. “I guess I’ll head to the shower, then.”

Alaska averted her eyes as Willam continued to shed her clothes, trying not to think about her perfectly toned body, how you could bounce a fucking quarter off her ass. Also how did she have no tan lines? Alaska cleared her throat and looked at the ceiling.

By the way Courtney didn’t even bat an eye, Alaska would be willing to guess that this was pretty normal behavior. Great. Just fucking great.

******

Willam was surprisingly happy with her roommate situation. Bianca was a bit of a bitch, but at least she was funny, and Alaska seemed pretty chill, a perfect counterbalance to Courtney’s boundless energy. They were both major improvements over last year’s wet blankets. Not to mention neither of them was particularly bad to look at. That was always a plus.

The mall closest to the campus was incredibly different than the ones Willam was used to on the East Coast. A big outdoor courtyard surrounded by flowers and cute, little shops, not to mention impressive department stores on either side. She breathed in, happy to be back in California, to feel the sunshine - warm without any oppressive humidity, imagining what her life might be someday. If she ever graduated from school. But that was a problem for another day, she decided.

It wasn’t long into her trip before Courtney spotted the See’s Candy and let out a giddy squeal, “Bill, come on, let’s get samples!”

Willam rolled her eyes as Courtney dragged towards the shop. She’d just spent 2 hours at the gym that morning! There was no way she was gonna blow that hard work on _candy_. Courtney, who had the metabolism of a hummingbird, never understood how disciplined she needed to be.

“My ex girlfriend was obsessed with that place. She never shut up about it,” Alaska sighed. Her heart had clenched the moment she recognized the sign and before she knew it, she was wistfully mentioning her ex. She’d been so open about it at her last school but now with all of her roommates’ eyes on her, she realized that perhaps this might not be such welcomed information.

Courtney had stopped dead in her tracks to round on Alaska with wide, curious eyes. Bianca had arched a brow at her, one of surprise, she hoped, and not judgement. But then there Willam. By the time Alaska’s gaze met hers, her cheeks were filling with a deep pink. Willam’s reaction was the most difficult to decipher. Her expression seemed blank at first but her eyes betrayed her. Willam’s focus was now solely zeroed in on Alaska, studying her, watching any reaction she might make. It left Alaska feeling anxious and uncertain.

But as she stood like a deer in headlights, Courtney broke out into a warm, toothy grin as she blurted out (quite loudly), “Don’t worry, Bianca’s gay too! And Willam’s bi!” before biting her lip self-consciously, realizing that everyone was now looking at _her_ with varying levels of amusement and irritation. 

“Foot in Mouth Disease strikes again,” Willam sighed as she shook her head. “Anything else you want to share with the other mallgoers, Court? Maybe inform them of my ass waxing schedule?”

Hand on her hip, Bianca piled on with, “You wanna call my grandma, come out for me? I don’t think _she_ knows yet.”

“I thought…” Courtney looked from Willam to Bianca, stammering out. “I mean, yesterday you said that you-I just thought it would be better if she knew...shit...”

Bianca broke first, taking pity on her with a cackling laugh and slipping an arm around Courtney’s shoulders. “She already knew, dollface,” she assured her, adding in a wink, “She’s seen us at the Gay Agenda meetings.”

“Ha ha,” Courtney retorted, rolling her eyes and folding her arms, but leaning against Bianca in the process.

“Well, I’d invite you, but I’m not sure you’re ready for the initiation ceremony…” Bianca teased. Alaska had just enough time to catch a hint of a smile curling at the edges of Courtney’s lips before she spun around and strolled off towards the candy shop with Bianca following close behind.

“And your grandma totally knows, by the way,” Willam called after her.

Bianca turned back with a smirk, flipping Willam off and holding the door. “You guys coming in?” she asked.

“Um...no thanks,” Alaska answered softly, twirling a lock of hair in her fingers. Any appetite she might have had suddenly left her and all she wanted was to sit down, if only for a moment.

Willam hesitated a moment, sparing a glance down to Alaska before replying, “You know, I’ll wait outside with Alaska. I shouldn’t eat sugar anyway.”

“Suit yourself,” Bianca muttered, letting the door swing shut behind her as a pleased grin settled on her lips.

Willam had to scoff. She recognized the signs already, even if Courtney was oblivious. “Poor Bianca. Really barking up the wrong tree there, eh?,” Willam said, turning to Alaska with a wicked grin. When the only reaction was a half-hearted chuckle, she asked, “Are you alright?”

“Yeah, sorry. I’m just…” Alaska trailed off, sitting down quickly at one of the benches. She turned her face from the crowd up to the sky, expression blank and distant. “I don’t know. Maybe I’m still jet-lagged or something. It just feels weird.”

There was a burning at the corners of her eyes but a few blinks and it was gone. Her heart however felt heavy and dull.

Willam settled down next to her and watched her closely. She didn’t speak for a while, running things over in her mind and seemed to be considering her words carefully. Which, from what Alaska could tell, was slightly out of character.

“Weird how?” Willam finally asked, tilting her head to the side. Her voice was calm and inviting but not pressuring. It was nice actually.

Picking at her nails, Alaska shrugged before replying with an uncertain, “Um...I guess I just need a little time to adjust.” A sigh escaped her as she added in hopefully, “I’m sure it’ll be easier once classes start.”

“Well…” Willam searched for something comforting to say, coming up woefully short. “You know, uh…”

“It’s really fine,” Alaska cut in with an apologetic smile. “Sorry I’m being so pathetic, I didn’t mean to drag you down.”

“You’re not pathetic!” Willam exclaimed. “I mean...maybe a little.”

A surprised laugh escaped from Alaska’s chest, immediately making Willam feel pleased with herself.

“I can see your potential though,” she continued. “So...I hope you feel better.”

“Thanks.” Alaska leaned back, pulling off her sunglasses. “I guess it’s mostly because-” she suddenly stopped abruptly, sitting up straight, as Courtney and Bianca burst from the candy store.

“What do you guys wanna do for lunch?” Courtney chirped, skipping over. “There’s that awesome bakery over by the movie theatre. They have tons of specials.”

“You’re still hungry?” Bianca laughed in amazement, “You just ate 3 pounds of chocolate!”

Waving them aside, Willam said, “You go ahead, we’ll catch up.”

Courtney looked from Willam to Alaska, head tilting, asking in concern, “Are you okay? Are you sick? Do you want to go home?”

“She’s fine,” Willam cut in, feeling oddly protective. “She’s just telling me about a recurring fantasy she’s having...of strangling you in your sleep.”

Bianca barked out a laugh. “Who hasn’t had _that_ one!”

“I know, very relatable,” Willam said, and Courtney blew a raspberry.

“Fuck you all, cunts!” She turned on her heel and began walking in the opposite direction, dragging Bianca behind her.

Once they were far enough out of range, Willam turned back to Alaska, who was shaking her head with a smirk.

“You’re a bully,” Alaska accused, no bite to her tone.

“Am not!”

Alaska raised an eyebrow.

“Courtney’s impossible to bully,” Willam reasoned, “She thinks everything is hilarious…And anyway, I was bullied enough growing up, so now it’s my turn.” Willam finished decisively, sitting back.

Alaska seemed shocked by this news. Incredulous, she asked, “ _You_ were bullied? For what? And who would dare?”

“Well...maybe I made jokes about myself before anyone else had the chance.” Willam stated, crossing her arms and legs tightly. She glanced at Alaska from the corner of her eye and admitted quietly, “I was really fat.”

“Is that all?” Alaska raised an eyebrow.

“Hey, being fat sucks. Fat and loud. I doubt you’d understand, Prom Queen.” She was starting to get agitated but something compelled her not to cut the conversation off just yet. And soon enough she was rewarded with a loud, obnoxious laugh from Alaska.

“That is...so very wrong.”

Willam shrugged her shoulders as best she could, muttering, “Come on, you’re sweet and...I mean look at you. You must have been popular.”

Alaska twisted a lock of hair in her fingers, a slight blush coloring her cheeks as she looked to the ground. “Actually, I was the gay weirdo in a class of 45 people.” 

“Yikes. Really?”

“Yeah. So...you know, when I first got to college, it was like, this giant relief. But then…” she trailed off. Willam understood where she was going.

“Listen,” she said abruptly, “I’m not gonna go all Oprah on you and ask a million questions. That’s Courtney’s thing.”

“Yeah, I noticed.” A smile tugged at the corners of Alaska’s mouth.

“But if you do want to talk, I do have ears.”

“Thanks.” After a pause, Alaska looked up into Willam’s questioning face and asked, “...you mean now?”

Willam gave a casual wave of her hand, one Alaska assumed was giving her the approval to proceed with bitching about her ex. The trouble was, where to even begin?

“Well, I…” Alaska started, then trailed off to bite her lip as she thought things through.

“You don’t have to, bro. It’s okay.”

“No, I know,” Alaska said. “It’s just that it’s all...a little jumbled. I don’t know. Like, I met Jinkx at orientation. Literally the first day.”

“Jinkx? That’s a name?”

“Do you really think that the two of us should be judging someone’s name? Besides, for her it was just a nickname, unlike _us_.”

“Fair point. Go on…” Willam laughed.

“So we like...we hooked up that first day, and then just...did everything together. And for a while, it was perfect. We cared about each other so much, and for the first time in my life, I felt like I could just relax and be myself. It was this awesome little baby lesbian bubble. I forgot all about high school, the homophobic little shits I grew up with…”

“Sounds nice,” Willam chuckled, giving her a lopsided smile.

“Yeah, it was. At first. And then like, things got totally intense. It wasn’t really anyone’s fault. It was just like, there were so many feelings, _all the time_ , especially after we moved in together the second year. We were always fighting and crying and like...we just realized, there was just no recovering, as much as we loved each other. We weren’t coming back from it.” 

Alaska paused for a moment, picking at her nails again. Willam was tempted to reach over, if only to stop her from destroying her nail beds, but ultimately restrained herself. Instead, her own fingers tapped against her knee as she waited for Alaska to collect herself and continue.

The air between them was loaded but after a minute of searching for the right words, Alaska resumed her story, “And then after awhile, I realized that I didn’t even have my own life. My own anything. I didn’t have any friends except _our_ friends. So I just...I guess, found it easier to cut my losses and never go back there then to deal with it.”

Willam gave her another half smile, then asked, “Do you regret it? Coming here, I mean.”

“Um...no. Maybe. I don’t know yet,” Alaska admitted. “Ask me in a few months.”

“Will do.”

“Anyway…” Alaska sighed. “Sorry about that. And thanks.”

“Anytime.”

“Careful, I might take you up on that,” Alaska warned.

“Good,” Willam said decisively.

Alaska looked down, a smile pressed between her lips. She felt better.

It still hurt but in a new way. It was still raw and emotional but it just didn’t seem as endless as it had before. She couldn’t really explain it, just knew that she liked this change.

“Wanna go find the other whores?” Willam asked softly.

“Sure...in a few minutes,” Alaska replied, staring back up at the sky.

Willam nodded, silently and awkwardly patting Alaska on the shoulder and then leaning her head back to stare up into the same cloudless space.

******

“Fucking Christ, where are they?” Willam wondered, looking around the cafe for what felt like the 18th time.

“I dunno…” Alaska drawled out. Anxiously drumming her fingers against her thigh, she asked “Are you sure this is the place Courtney meant?”

“Yeah, I’m sure.” She marched back outside, spotting Courtney and Bianca strolling at a leisurely pace through the courtyard. “Hey! What the fuck?”

Courtney waved happily, oblivious to Willam’s annoyance, still chatting away with Bianca, and Willam scoffed. She placed her hands on her hips, tapping her foot impatiently.

“Sorry about that, back there…” Alaska said as soon as Courtney was within earshot.

In response, Courtney just gave her a warm smile and replied sincerely, “It’s fine. I hope you’re okay.” She reached out and squeezed Alaska’s hand, and thankfully didn’t ask any more questions. A small pang of guilt made Alaska wish that she hadn’t spent so much energy judging her in the beginning...or any of her roommates for that matter.

“Did you at least have some fun?” Alaska questioned.

“Yeah,” Courtney’s smile brightened as she glanced over at Bianca. “B made an...interesting purchase.”

Bianca gave her a wicked smirk and held a finger to her lips. Although mildly curious, Alaska decided not to pry. After all, Courtney didn’t try to force any explanation out of Alaska, so it was only fair she returned the favor.

“I’m sure I don’t even want to know,” Willam said, shaking her head.

“Come on, let’s go get some food,” Alaska suggested in a joyful giggle.

******

Once they’d put in their orders, Alaska followed Willam outside to choose a table, mildly amused at how picky she actually was. It had to be in the sun, but not _too_ sunny, with a view of the fountain but _not_ the parking lot. Once she was finally satisfied, Willam plopped herself into one of the cushioned wicker chairs decisively.

“Are you sure this table meets all of your requirements, your highness?” Bianca asked, watching with an air of restlessness as Willam made herself comfortable.

“I know what I like,” Willam commented with a shrug, sipping her iced tea calmly.

“Don’t days like this just make you happy to be alive?” asked Courtney, settling down beside Willam with a contented sigh.

“Alright, Miss America,” Bianca said with an eye roll.

Courtney stuck out her tongue, then added, “I did actually win a pageant, once.”

“We know, we know, Miss Tater Tot-” Willam said, before Courtney interrupted her with a shrieking giggle.

“No, Miss _Tiny Tot!_ I was 5. I won a car.”

“What the fuck is a 5 year old supposed to do with a car?” Bianca nearly yelled in disbelief.

“I would love to meet Miss Tater Tot,” Alaska mused. A lazy smile appeared on her lips as she added in, “She sounds delicious.”

“And crispy,” Bianca agreed.

“Eh, I’m off carbs,” said Willam.

Courtney rested her face in her hands, looking around at all of the girls with a hopeful, dreamy smile on her face. She took a deep breath, then before she could speak, Willam cut her off.

“Oh no,” she groaned, looking at Courtney with dread in her eyes.

“What?”

“I know that fucking look. You’re about to get all...Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants on us, aren’t you?” Willam accused.

“No! I was just gonna say-”

“Something lame and cheesy about best friends forever?” she mocked.

Courtney crossed her arms and countered, “-that I’m glad we’re all getting to know each other...and I have a really good feeling about this year.” She looked at Willam pointedly. “Was that acceptable, boss?”

“...barely. You’re on thin ice.” Willam teased, snatching Courtney’s lemonade to take a sip.

Courtney’s face scrunched up into a pout, and Alaska decided to come to her defense. After all, it was a beautiful day and these girls were going to be her roommates for the year, so she ought to at least make an effort. And as funny as the constant shade might be, she appreciated Courtney’s attempt at sincerity. Especially in this group, where she knew that she’d most likely get mocked for it.

“I think it was great, Courtney.” She raised her cup. “Here’s to the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.”

“More like the Golden Girls,” Bianca said drily, and Alaska squealed happily. She absolutely adored that comparison more than words could describe.

“Speak for yourself, you old cunt,” Willam laughed.

“Omigod, I love that show,” Alaska cut in, barely containing her glee. 

“What show?” asked Courtney, confused.

“Golden Girls!”

“I’ve never heard of it.” Courtney shook her head, still puzzled.

Alaska tried to keep her mouth from gaping open as she leaned back in her chair. An excuse to watch her favorite TV show, with someone who’s never witnessed the magic before? This had suddenly turned into the best day in a long time. Already thoughts of how to create the perfect viewing party were running wild through her head.

“Well, I know what we’re doing tonight,” she declared with a happy, decisive smile.

“Is it even streaming anywhere?” Bianca wondered.

“Doesn’t matter. I have all 7 seasons on DVD,” Alaska proclaimed, adding a tongue pop for emphasis.

“We don’t have a DVD player…” Willam pretended to look disappointed. Of all the things she wanted to do tonight, a Golden Girls marathon was certainly _not_ one of them.

“We’re at a mall. It’s happening. Also we need to buy cheesecake.”

Courtney clasped her hands to her chest and asked, “Can we all get in our jammies and make popcorn and have a real slumber party?”

“Yes!” Alaska answered, pointing at her.

The pair shared an enthusiastic grin with one another, already feeling their excitement building up to the point of pure joy. “Dear god,” Bianca muttered, looking horrified as she glanced from one beaming girl to the other.

Willam leaned in towards Bianca and said in a loud stage whisper, “It’s not too late to kill them both, you know.”

Bianca laughed and toasted her, but Alaska merely leaned her head on Courtney’s shoulder and sighed happily. Maybe this would be a good year after all.

*******

The first two weeks of classes sped by without incident. It all felt like a blissful daze for Willam, aside from the unfortunate interruptions of homework, that is. But it was still early in the semester and the expectations weren’t too high yet. She could go out and have fun without worrying about some paper or assignment looming over her head...at least for now. So in the meantime, she was dividing her extra time between her roommates, her social life, and, of course her, her side job.

She had a good balance going, she thought.

Tonight however was reserved just for her roommates, complete with plans to veg out in front of the TV, eat takeout (using up one of the rare cheat meals she allowed herself), and watch some horrible B-list movies or maybe just start a new series on Netflix. Either way, it all sounded wonderfully relaxing. The perfect way to close out the week.

They were in the midst of chatting about classes and eating dinner when Alaska’s phone began to buzz. Her previously giddy expression quickly morphed into one of apprehension. Willam’s attention was immediately on her.

She had an idea, even without looking at the phone, as to who could possibly warrant such a change in Alaska’s mood. While Courtney and Bianca chatted away, oblivious to the world for the time being, Willam gave Alaska a small nudge and asked softly, “Jinkx?”

“Um, yeah,” came the quiet confirmation. Alaska was looking at the screen with an air of distrust, “No idea why she’s calling.”

“Pick it up,” Willam suggested with a shrug. “Find out.”

Alaska gave a murmur of discontent, clearly unsure of herself or what she ought to do.

In the end, she let the buzzing go on for another three rounds before snatching the phone up and answering it with a rushed, “Hey, sorry, was just eating. What’s up?”

Her voice was quiet and withdrawn from the start. As Jinkx spoke, Alaska began chewing the interior of her lip, listening intently to whatever was being said. Already Willam was having second thoughts about encouraging her to accept the call.

“Um, yeah, just...Hold on. I’m gonna go into another room,” Alaska replied into the phone, speeding off to her bedroom without even another glance at her roommates.

 _Yeah_ , Willam thought to herself, _this was a bad idea._

But there was nothing to do now aside from waiting for Alaska to finish her call. All she hoped was that she wouldn’t be too upset when she came back out. But something about the twisting in the pit of Willam’s stomach told her that’d be a long shot. Just look at how dejected Alaska had been at the mall with just the _thought_ of Jinkx. Never mind actually talking to her.

Willam was prepared to offer some consolation once Alaska reemerged and kept a cautious eye on her closed door. She expected Alaska to come out after a few minutes or for the low chattering to stop but every time there was a lull in the noise filtering from Alaska’s bedroom, within a minute it would just start back up again. It left Willam feeling curious and a bit anxious.

Even after 20 minutes and their dinners finished, Alaska still had not come back out. By now Bianca and Courtney had noticed her absence and asked Willam about it.

“Got a call from her ex. Went in there to talk to her.” Her voice sounded weird to her ears. There was some kind of tone to it that she didn’t recognize...bitterness? Not quite right but close.

Courtney stared at the closed door for a few moments, almost as if she too were trying to will Alaska into reappearing. But as Bianca cleaned up the dishes and set them in the sink, it became apparent that Alaska was not coming out anytime soon.

“Think she’s okay in there?” Courtney asked in concern.

“She’s a big girl, she can handle herself,” Bianca reminded her. A short burst of laughter echoed from the bedroom. Definitely not the sound of someone having a horrible conversation. “Seems like she’d doing just fine.”

With that, Bianca unanimously decided that they were going to continue on with their girls’ night. Alaska could join in whenever she was finished, she figured. Courtney was all too eager to help Bianca pick out what to watch, arguing passionately about the merits of whatever horribly depressing documentary she suggested. Bianca kept up the debate, ultimately winning as she had already claimed the remote, and settling down on the couch with a triumphant grin. Courtney pouted of course, but only 10 minutes in and she was lazily leaning against Bianca and watching whatever program with her in contented silence.

Both let their attention become consumed by the show but try as she might, Willam just couldn't get into it like they were. She told herself it was just because of the consistent drone of Alaska’s muffled conversation and fits of laughter that kept distracting her. It was hard to pay attention when there was some kind of irritating background noise, right?

Hours went by with Willam feeling even more restless than she could remember. She made frequent trips to the kitchen, using any excuse she could think of to just get out of her seat and move. All this resulted in her drinking a massive amount of water and wine. Eventually, she found herself needing to use the bathroom but as she passed by a certain bedroom door, she discovered she was able to hear Alaska’s conversation almost perfectly.

“Yeah, it’s been...it was weird coming out here. I wanted a change, you know? Just to get away from everything.”

There was a pause as Jinkx replied with something.

“No, I like it out here, I really do...Yeah...It’s nice. You’d like it, too, I think.”

Alaska’s voice was contemplative and sentimental. She meant the words, Willam could tell, but there was more to it that she wasn’t saying. Willam wondered what until Alaska continued on with, “I miss you, too. All of you, but you...I miss being able to see you, you know?”

A long, muffled response from Jinkx. One Willam ached to hear.

“Right. No, I get that, really...Just-through a screen isn’t really the same, is it?”

What? Were they facetiming now?

 _Ugh, whatever,_ Willam decided, storming into the bathroom.

She was done eavesdropping. She was going to join Bianca and Courtney for Girls’ Night, even if some _others_ weren’t, and she was going to have a good time...even if it killed her.

******

“Good talk?” Willam asked once Alaska finally re-emerged from the bedroom and settled in on the empty space on the couch.

“Yeah,” she confirmed with a pleased, blissful smile, “Really good.”

Willam nodded and left the conversation at that. To anyone else in the room it might have looked like she was intensely focused on the drama playing out on the screen but in truth her mind felt a million miles away. Countless thoughts and questions raced through her mind. Most of them centered around wondering just what the hell came out of Alaska and Jinkx’s conversation.

It sounded almost like Alaska was getting ready to invite her out here but she wouldn’t...right?

It was literally across the country and both of them have schoolwork to consider. There’s just no way Alaska would ask her to come all the way out to California. But...she wasn’t thinking of going back either, was she?

The thought of that had Willam feeling conflicted and peevish. She knew she was working herself into a bad mood over probably nothing but she just couldn’t stop herself from overthinking. She actually kind of liked having Alaska as a roommate- Bianca, too- and didn’t want that to change. It was already so comfortable and easy...why would she want to mess that up? She and Jinkx already broke up once, why go through it a second time?

As Willam’s thoughts began to run wild down that path, she had to remind herself that she hadn’t heard Alaska say that she is or even wants to get back together with Jinkx...so she shouldn’t worry about it, right? It wasn’t even any of her business.

But even that reminder couldn’t shake the burning questions she still had about the call. In the end, Willam spent most of the Girls’ Night in a mulish silence. Courtney and Alaska tried to pull her out of it but Willam was not so easily convinced, so they left her alone...for the most part.

As the quartet cleaned up for the night, Alaska pulled Willam aside to ask, “Hey, you alright? You haven’t really said much tonight.”

“Not that you were here to notice,” Willam muttered.

Alaska cocked her head to the side, as if confused, then suddenly it hit her. “Oh,” she murmured guilty, “Yeah, we were talking for a while, weren’t we?” Willam rolled her eyes. “Sorry, we just...had a lot to catch up on. I promise, next Girls Night, I’m all yours.”

Despite herself, Willam perked up at that thought. “‘Next’?” she repeated, a teasing smirk beginning to appear on her lips.

Nudging Willam’s side with her elbow, Alaska beamed back, “Yes, ‘next’. We are going to keep having these for the rest of the year, right?”

“Yeah,” Willam agreed. Suddenly she felt a good bit lighter. “Until I find some guy to fuck. Then you bitches are on your own.”

Alaska’s laugh was loud and braying, enough that Courtney and Bianca turned around to see what was so funny. Neither Willam or Alaska was willing to enlighten them, something about it made them feel disinclined to share. Though each knew it was a hollow threat, neither commented on the fact and let the conversation drop there. Going to bed that night, Willam had to admit, although there were some things she really needed to work out, and soon, she was still pretty grateful for the roommates she got this year. Her only hope was that things would stay this good, at least until the end of spring semester.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link to chapter 3 in Off Limits- https://archiveofourown.org/works/27201197/chapters/67689365#workskin

All things considered, Alaska was having a pretty decent start to her school year. Sure, the first couple of days had been difficult. And sure, she still had times when she just wanted to crawl under her covers and block out the entire world. But she thought she was adjusting quite well, otherwise.

When she first met Bianca, she was completely thrown by her particular brand of in-your-face, abrasive humor. But over the next few weeks, she began to see Bianca for who she really was -- consistent, reliable, organized to the point of compulsiveness, and (though Bianca would never admit it), genuinely caring. She was the one who brought home orange juice and medicine when Alaska got a cold. She was the one who kept the liquor cabinet stocked and the kitchen clean and made a schedule for the bathroom on busy mornings to keep them all from losing their minds.

Alaska had to admit, also, that they had a bit more in common than she first assumed. Even more than the fact that they were both gay transfer students who sometimes felt out of place. They could both appear a little judgey and uptight. But once they trusted you, both of them were ride-or-die loyal. And both, with just a little arm-twisting, could be persuaded to really cut loose, having no problem keeping up with their life-of-the-party roommates.

Alaska had written Courtney off that first day as a vapid, overly familiar busybody. The type of person who sailed through life with a pretty face and shallow charm. But quickly, she realized that Courtney’s sometimes endless questions were just a sign of genuine interest in other people, a desire to get deep -- maybe a little too quickly for Alaska’s comfort, but certainly with the best of intentions. Her bubbly personality, rather than annoying Alaska, soon became endearing, and Alaska found herself looking forward to their chats, to getting recaps of her favorite lectures and even to opening up.

And then there was Willam. Alaska still hadn’t quite figured Willam out. She liked her; she knew that much, but she remained a bit of an enigma. For starters, Willam never seemed to crack a book. While the rest of them would be stressing over papers and exams, Willam would be out shopping, partying late into the night and then up at the crack of dawn to go to the gym. Of the four of them, Willam seemed to be the only one who regularly brought home any overnight guests. (As far as Alaska could tell, Bianca’s liaisons were discreet and off-campus. And Courtney, despite being the most flirtatious person Alaska had ever met, seemed to keep her romantic adventures limited to above-the-waist making out at parties.) More than once, Alaska had stumbled out of bed in the morning to find a “friend” of Willam’s being entertained in the kitchen. Usually by Courtney, with Bianca offering them coffee and a complimentary STD test. As for Ms. Belli herself? She’d be at the gym or the mall, content to let her forgotten tryst fend for themselves.

And that was the other thing. So far, every one of her one-night-stands was with a boy. Which was fine, and Alaska was usually the last person to judge someone’s romantic choices. However, Willam had been pretty clear about being bi, so it made Alaska wonder. Why only guys? Was she actually attracted to girls, more than just in theory? And if so...what kind of girl would she like? Alaska tried not to dwell on all the questions, especially the last one, but it was hard. Willam was just such a mystery. One she found more intriguing than any others.

But in spite of that, and the elusive weirdness of how Willam earned her money (thankfully, Alaska still didn’t have more details on that), there was something truly compelling about her. Her wicked sense of humor, her surprisingly soft heart, her ability to make any and every situation fun.

Although occasionally, her need for fun got a bit out of control. Like tonight. Alaska and Courtney were sitting in the living room studying when Willam waltzed in with a healthy buzz and a man on each arm. Tall, dark, identical men, like a pair of Ken dolls.

“Jeremy, that’s Courtney. She’s the one I told you about,” Willam said, then added in a stage whisper, “No gag reflex.”

“Hey Bill,” Courtney said with a wary smile. “What’s going on?”

“Not much. I just thought you’d like my friend Jeremy here. He’s got a nice dick.”

“You haven’t seen my dick,” Jeremy laughed.

“No, but you guys are twins, right?” Willam smirked, then turned back to Courtney, saying, “It’s real nice, trust me.”

“Good to know,” Courtney said, voice just slightly clipped. She might have had a tense, polite smile on her face but Alaska could easily spot the growing irritation in her eyes.

“I think that’s my cue to leave,” Alaska muttered, gathering up her things. Time to go hide in her bedroom, she figured. Hell, she’d almost rather study in the dorm’s parking lot than stay in the living room for whatever _this_ was.

“You sure?” asked the Not-Jeremy Twin with a wink. “You don’t wanna stay and party?”

“She’s a lesbian,” Willam informed him. “But Lask, if you’re curious-”

“Uh, no thanks. Have fun, kids.” Alaska saluted and hightailed it into her bedroom, shutting and locking the door firmly behind her.

As soon as she had dumped her belongings on her bed, she dug out her headphones and blasted some music in preparation for what she’d likely be hearing later on. The only thing she had wished she’d remembered was to grab a snack from the kitchen. Likely Willam and Courtney would be busy entertaining for the next few hours and the last thing she wanted to do was walk in on something. Especially given how loud she’s already heard Willam being from time to time, even when _knowing_ one of her roommates was still around.

Oh, well. It was only a few hours. Could be worse, she figured. Now to figure out what playlist to use _this_ time.

*******

Hours later, Willam emerged from the bedroom, yawning, hair a mess, expecting to find Courtney and Jeremy on the sofa. Instead, her roommate was curled up beside _Bianca_ with a huge bowl of popcorn, watching some bullshit on Netflix.

A bit miffed, Willam marched around the side of the couch in front of the pair of giggling women and put her hands on her hips. “Uh...hello?” she asked, annoyance tinting her voice.

“Hey,” Courtney replied, neck craning to keep her eyes on the TV.

“Where’s Jeremy?” Willam demanded impatiently.

“Gone,” Courtney replied simply and with a pleasant smile to boot.

“Yeah, I see that. What the fuck, Courtney? You were supposed to keep him entertained!” Willam was getting even more irritated at the way Courtney practically ignored her.

“Yeah, well, for some reason, he was under the impression that I was gonna blow him, so things got real awkward real fast.”

Bianca snickered in the background, then noticed Willam’s angry glare and looked away quickly, shoving some popcorn into her mouth. A grin was still present on her lips as she undoubtedly listened with bated breath for what would happen next.

Willam stepped closer towards, arms crossed and asked, “So why didn’t you just blow him?”

Courtney rolled her eyes and said irritably, “I’m not gonna suck a dick just because you tell me to.”

“You should be thanking me!” Willam exclaimed. “You haven’t gotten laid all semester and he was hot. I was doing you a favor.”

“Thanks, Bill. You’re so generous,” Courtney said, voice dripping with sarcasm.

“Whatever, you’re such a baby!” Willam flounced from the room, beyond annoyed and not wanting to look at Courtney’s stupid face anymore. She just didn’t understand how Courtney could turn down such a hot piece of ass (who was clearly up for anything) in order to just laze around on the couch with Bianca! She thought Courtney would be grateful to her for bringing home such an easy score. God, the nerve of her sending him off! She could have at least given him back to Willam.

******

“Hey…” Alaska nodded to Willam as she approached the coffee maker. She’d obviously just come home from the gym, and per usual, hadn’t gone straight for a shower. Instead, she was sitting at the table, sipping some hideous-smelling vanilla protein shake.

“Morning,” Willam replied.

Alaska poured a generous mug of coffee, blowing on it softly while she leaned against the counter. She looked at Willam again, questions from last night still swirling around in her head.

“You and Courtney still fighting?”

“Huh?” Willam blinked in confusion.

“Bianca said you guys were fighting last night,” Alaska replied slowly and carefully, “Over the whole Jeremy thing?”

Willam’s brow furrowed. “Who’s Jeremy?” she asked, as if she really had no idea who Alaska was talking about.

Alaska’s jaw dropped in amazement. How could Willam not remember this? “The twins!” she exclaimed, “The one you brought home for Courtney?”

“Ohhh.” Willam waved her hand dismissively. “That wasn’t a fight. I just didn’t understand why she’d turn down perfectly good dick. She’s basically been celibate all semester, it’s weird.” Alaska raised an eyebrow, and Willam quickly added, “She doesn’t have a reason, like you.”

“Maybe she just...isn’t interested in dick right now. Even if it’s good,” Alaska offered. Her nails drummed against her coffee mug.

“Pfft. She is, you should have seen her last year. She’s just...I don’t know, punishing herself for something.”

Of course, Alaska had noticed how Courtney hung on Bianca’s every word, laughed gleefully at every joke, eyes sparkling with adoration. She noticed the way Courtney’s touches would linger on Bianca’s skin, the way she leaned into Bianca with every chance, had to force herself to leave Bianca’s side. She thought you’d have to be blind not to notice. And Willam, it appeared, was blind.

“Right. Well...I’m glad you guys are cool.”

“Yeah, we’re always cool,” Willam laughed. “Even when she’s a spoilsport.”

“While we’re on the topic of dick…” Alaska began tentatively, and Willam’s eyes lit up.

“Reconsidering that threesome idea?” she asked. Willam's stomach flipped in anticipation of the answer.

“Definitely not. No, I was just wondering…” She hesitated, unsure if she really wanted to go down this line of questioning. It was potentially invasive, and she knew that Willam might very well get defensive. Or worse.

“What?”

“Nothing,” Alaska said, wrinkling her nose and taking another sip of her coffee. “It’s probably offensive.”

“I dare you to offend me,” Willam challenged, eyes narrowing slightly, but still shining with joy.

“Well...you’re bi, right?”

“Yeah?”

“I’ve only ever seen you with guys though,” Alaska said carefully.

“So?”

“Well...so...are you sure you’re into girls, too?”

“Wow. You’re right. That is offensive,” Willam deadpanned. 

“I just mean...you know, you talk about dick a lot,” Alaska said. “But I’ve never heard you express any...you know what, it’s none of my business.”

“You’re right, it’s not.” Willam stirred her drink violently, lips pursed.

“Okay then.” Alaska began to back out of the room. “Sorry.”

Willam heaved an aggravated sigh. “Alaska.”

Stopping in her tracks, Alaska replied softly, “Yeah?”

It took a few beats before she answered. Her eyes had dropped to her smoothie, suddenly having lost any desire to finish it. Her stomach felt like it was in knots as she debated letting Alaska see this more vulnerable side of herself. There was a reason she didn’t really like to go on about girls. A very good reason. One she doubted Alaska would truly understand. “I guess I just have a harder time with girls. I don’t really know how to read them. Even flirting sometimes just feels...risky.”

“I can’t imagine you ever having a hard time flirting,” Alaska said, a cautious smile curling at the edges of her lips. She took a few steps closer to Willam and cocked her head to the side as an invitation to continue.

“Well. It’s relative,” Willam began to babble, “I mean, guys are so easy. They’re like...simple, basic, dumb creatures. You know? It doesn’t take much. Usually nothing more than a smile.” She looked up for a second, then back at Alaska, eyes clear and bright. “So I don’t have to work hard, or be intuitive, or sensitive. Women are more complicated than that. And...it’s a lot harder to brush it off if they don’t want me. So...” she trailed off. 

Alaska sat down next to her, saying quietly, “That may be true. But...what if it’s worth it? The extra suffering?”

“Good question. I dunno.” Willam chuckled wryly, shrugging.

“Just some food for thought,” Alaska said, giving her a big smile and quick wink.

******

“Come on, please?” Willam pleaded as she shadowed Courtney around the tiny kitchen space. “For $500? It’s such easy money!”

Briskly preparing her tea, Courtney replied firmly, “I said no, Bill!” Irritation was beginning to creep in at the edges of her voice. But Willam was relentless.

“But you’re not even getting naked.” Willam argued with a heavy sigh, causing Bianca and Alaska, sitting at the kitchen’s island to exchange a look of confusion and curiosity with one another. “Just sitting on your bed, reading. You said you had a lot of reading to do.”

Courtney swirled in a dash of almond milk with her tea, clanging the spoon quite deliberately against the sides. “Yeah, I do! And I need to _concentrate,”_ she stressed, raising the cup to her lips. After taking a shallow sip and deciding she needed one last glug of milk, she huffed out, “I don’t need some gross dude heavy breathing at me while I do it.”

 _Now things are starting to make more sense,_ Alaska thought to herself. Bianca shared another expressive look with her and returned back to flipping through the study packet in front of her. Taking that as her cue, Alaska pretended to find something much more interesting on her phone. In truth, however, she was listening in quite acutely and she had a guess Bianca was probably doing the same as well.

Groaning in frustration, Willam pointed out, “He’s not _that_ gross.”

“High praise,” Courtney muttered as she rolled her eyes and returned the milk back to the fridge.

Willam watched in bewilderment as Courtney settled in at the island with their roommates. _How could Courtney refuse such easy money?_ It was literally getting paid to just sit somewhere and go about her business.

But she _needed_ Courtney for this appointment! She had her eye on a pair of new Louboutin heels that were supposed to be released in the next month or so and she had to get her preorder in _now!_ They always ran out of her size by the time they actually hit the shelf and who knew how long it would be before they were restocked?

This one appointment, if all went well, would be the last chunk of change she needed in order to confirm her preorder. This client had been a long standing one, scheduling regular sessions every few weeks, especially if Willam could entice another cute co-ed to join her, even if it was just in the background. And when she saw him reaching out at the most absolutely perfect moment, Willam immediately offered pull in a second person. 

Normally, Willam would have simply reached out to Tatianna, a flirty sophomore she met last year at some frat party. Tatianna never had an issue joining Willam’s appointments for a cut of the action and was always up for a quick make out session, on or off camera. She was absolutely perfect for this client but as Willam soon discovered, she was working off-campus today with absolutely no chance to get back in time for the appointment. Even Willam’s second, third, and fourth choice all had plans or simply weren’t interested.

Fuck!

But maybe...she might be able to entice a certain roommate of hers...she hoped.

However, Willam could see that Courtney was absolutely not going for it. Wincing to herself as she made this decision, she offered, “Fine, a thousand.” _Good bye, matching sunglasses_.

“No!” Courtney squealed out. God, Willam was persistent today. But even Alaska had choked a little as she heard the amount.

Perking back up, (and confirming Alaska’s suspicions she’d been listening with bated breath), Bianca was baffled, “You’re turning down a thousand dollars?”

“Would _you_ do it?” Courtney countered, staring at her with a pointed look in her eyes.

Not even having to think twice, Bianca answered, “Hell yeah.” Turning back to Willam as she gathered up her text book, study packet, phone and pen, she asked, “Right now?”

Seeing some light at the end of the tunnel, Willam’s beaming smile returned and offered up a high five, “Alright, B!” She stuck her tongue out at Courtney for good measure.

Nose wrinkling, Courtney asked with disbelief, “You’re really gonna let some disgusting mouth breather watch you study just to make a few bucks?”

“It’s a _thousand dollars_ ,” Bianca pointed out as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. And really, wasn’t it?

Even Alaska had to admit she had not seen this coming. She’d given up all pretext of staring at her phone in order to watch this exchange instead.

But before Bianca could scamper off with her things, Willam piped up with, “Whoa, whoa, whoa...I said I could get _her_ a thousand dollars. I don’t have an offer for you yet.”

Bianca opened her mouth in indignation to begin arguing but Courtney cut her off with a very confused, “She should get more than me. Her tits are bigger.” 

“That’s not exactly how the pricing works,” Willam laughed out. _If only Courtney knew the half of it,_ she thought to herself.

Drumming the fingers of her free hand against the counter, a smooth, rhythmic clicking sound filling the kitchen, Bianca remained thoughtful for a moment before asking, “So how much would I get?”

Even Alaska was curious about the answer. “Probably at least five hundred,” Willam shrugged before unlocking her phone. “Gimme a minute.”

 _How does that conversation even go?_ Alaska wondered. But then her thoughts drifted back to Willam’s entire business venture. How did Willam find her appointments, book them…talk to her, um,... _clientele._

Maybe some day she’d ask about that. Maybe even what, ahem, “services” she offered. Willam would probably be more than happy to tell her but somewhere deep in the pit of Alaska’s stomach, a twisting winding knot was starting to form. It often happened when her thoughts trailed towards questioning Willam’s side job and she learned pretty quickly just to let it drop after that. The twisting wasn’t exactly unpleasant but it was more than weird and Alaska just didn’t have the energy most of the time to figure out why.

As she thought about this, Bianca scurried over to Willam, looking over her shoulder and down at her phone. “I’ll do it for a thousand,” she said, trying to read Willam’s tiny ass messages running across her screen, “Why can’t _I_ get a thousand?”

“Well, she’s blonde and she looks 16,” Willam replied simply as she messaged her client and answered his questions. 

Courtney let out an emphatic groan of disgust, “Gross!”

Bianca’s eyes narrowed at the implication Willam was trying to make. Pursing her lips, she asked testily, “Are you saying I’m too old to be a cam girl?”

“No!” Willam said all too quickly, head popping back up. “It’s just...you know, you look...like...early 20s?” There was a slightly apologetic tone to her voice that Bianca didn’t care for.

Annoyance creeped into her answer as she stated, “I _am_ early 20s.”

“Right.”

“Rude,” she huffed out. “I could totally be a cam girl if I wanted to.”

“Of course you could, dearheart.” 

“Fuck you,” Bianca grumbled. “Bet I’d make a better one than _you_.”

“Look, just chill out, okay?” Willam muttered. Not her best attempt at smoothing things over but that was alright. “I can get you...750? But only if we kiss,” she quickly added in.

Bianca went thoughtful and silent for a few moments, mulling over her options. Courtney and Alaska watched her carefully while Willam returned to typing away on her phone. _What’s she gonna do?_ Alaska mused. _Seems like she’s really thinking about it._

Courtney looked to be holding her breath as well but her expression was a bit difficult to decipher. Cloudy, certainly, but not angry. No...maybe even- 

Finally, Bianca broke her silence to ask consideringly, “Would I get the money today?”

“Bianca!” Courtney gasped out.

Ignoring her, Willam answered in her most professional-sounding voice, “Yeah, they send it by Paypal.”

“Okay,” Bianca decided, “but I want the money first.”

“Fine,” Willam muttered, tapping away at her phone again, “Jesus.”

Bianca waltzed off with her belongings towards Willam and Courtney’s bedroom, smirk on her face and lazy thoughts of what she’ll do with the money, but Willam’s voice quickly interrupted her as she called out a strong suggestion of ‘prettying herself up a little’. “They love to think we just lounge around looking perfect all the time, waiting for them to call.”

“Ugh,” Bianca groaned, “This is turning into _work_.”

“Welcome to my life, bitch!”

******

Two hours later the women emerged from the Willam’s bedroom, laughing their asses off. Bianca was even wiping away the traces of a tear from her eye as they wandered into the living room. Both Courtney and Alaska looked up at them; Courtney from her text book and Alaska from her laptop where she may or may not have been streaming a podcast instead of reviewing her class notes.

“Appointment went well, I’m guessing?” Courtney spoke with a hint of suspicion in her tone. Or was that bitterness, Alaska wondered.

“Definitely,” Bianca assured her with a laugh.

Willam grinned as well and added in smugly, “Told you it was easy money.”

“Now I know why _you_ do it,” Bianca quipped, resting against the arm of the couch nearest Courtney, addressing both of her roommates. “And I already checked; money’s in my account. _$850,_ ” she boasted proudly. “He even tipped, the sleazy little sweetheart.” Then elbowing Courtney lightly in the side, she said with a smirk, “Betcha regret skipping out now, huh?”

“And having to kiss Willam for it?” she replied, her ears beginning to heat up. “Hard pass. I regret nothing.”

Bianca and Willam shared a brief look with one another and broke out laughing once again. Now feeling her cheeks beginning to grow warm, Courtney huffed out, “What? Didn’t you do it? Or was it just a stage kiss, like where you kiss your thumbs?”

At this, the women laughed even harder. Bianca even clutched onto the fabric of the couch as she tried to remain upright. Courtney’s eyes shot over to Alaska but even she had no clue what was so funny. All she could offer up was a very confused shrug after pulling out her ear buds.

“Care to let us in on the joke?” Alaska asked, her voice managing to sound both curious yet uninterested at the same time.

A teasing glint rose to Bianca’s eyes as they narrowed in on Courtney. Her voice was sweet and mocking as she leaned down and cooed, “Why don’t I just show you what we did?”

Courtney’s mind began to short circuit as a myriad of questions ran rampant through her thoughts. _Was Bianca going to kiss her? Did she and Willam actually kiss? What did she mean by ‘show her’? Wait, was Bianca leaning in closer?_

Every little detail felt like it was magnified by 100 as Bianca’s face slowly crept closer to hers. Then in an instant Bianca was on her feet again, one hand buried deep in Willam’s wavy hair while the other gently tilted her chin up and guided her lips towards Bianca’s. Willam’s own hands were gripping onto Bianca’s hips and pulling her in tight as they closed what little gap remained between them. Almost as soon as their lips touched, a low, drawn out moan echoed deep in Willam’s throat. The hand in Willam’s hair retreated, pulling a few strands along with it, as Bianca moved to carefully cup Willam’s cheek, stroking the skin softly with the pad of her thumb. Her other hand dropped to the curve of Willam’s back and kept her neatly in place; pressed tight against Bianca. Courtney had enough time to witness the subtle flexing of Willam’s fingers before a flurry of emotion swept through her.

All at once it was like a tidal wave had crashed over her as she sat dumbstruck on the couch watching their little show. Each emotion felt like it was clawing its way up through her stomach, trying to make itself known, only to be pulled back down again by another before Courtney could truly figure out what she was feeling. She was just beginning to recognize the growing sense of jealousy when her roommates broke apart, giggling like mad. Even Alaska didn’t seem much better off, her lips slightly parted in shock as she watched Willam and Bianca. She felt a strange burning in her chest. No, not exactly a burn but something heating up, overheating, twisting and knotting, feeling heavy and unmoveable.

“Definitely not stage kiss,” Bianca commented with a little wink for good measure as her hands finally withdrew from Willam’s body.

An awkward laugh escaped from Alaska as she noted, “Good job. Looked pretty real.”

“Thanks,” Bianca chuckled, smoothing out the hem of her shirt before settling in on the couch between Alaska and Courtney. “I’m a great actor, what can I say?” she added in dramatically before her giggling got the best of her. “But really, I did do a little theater work in high school.”

“Don’t recall any high school plays calling for _that,_ ” Courtney remarked stonily.

Bianca rounded on her with a curious expression, as if trying to will Courtney to explain a little more. Even Willam raised a brow at her while she made herself comfortable in the recliner. But as Coutney’s gaze travelled from one pair of eyes to the next, she found herself withdrawing under the scrutiny. A strange sense of irritation was beginning to build in the back of her mind and was certainly not helped when Bianca mocked her with, “Something you wanna say, sweetheart?”

“No,” she grumbled all too quickly, then thinking better of it added in, “I just don’t remember any of my high school plays calling for something that...provocative.”

“‘Provocative’?” Willam repeated in that seal-laugh voice of hers. “The fuck do you mean, ‘provocative’?”

“I just-I don’t see any kissing like _that_ in you know, _Grease_ or _Wicked_ or _Our Town-”_

“All _straight_ couples,” Willam pointed out in a perfectly demeaning and mocking manner. “I see how it is. I’m sorry our rampant lesbianism offended your sheltered, innocent eyes.”

“Wow, Court,” Bianca added in, dramatically feigning a tone of surprise. “Didn’t take _you_ to be such a prude.”

“I’m not!” Courtney interrupted, high voice climbing in pitch.

Willam pretended not to hear her and directed another “innocent” suggestion to Bianca, “Maybe she really is just homophobic?”

“I am not homophobic!” Courtney protested in a loud squeal. Alaska could see her becoming more and more frazzled but she was still trying her best to sound calm and level-headed.

She might have succeeded had Bianca not piled on with an incredibly disappointed, “Damn, Courtney. Homophobia in this day and age? I gotta say, I expected more from you.”

“Mh-mm,” Willam agreed with a nod of her head. “Cancelled!” she noted in a singsongy voice. 

Alaska picked up on the little smirks on each of the women’s lips but all of it went over Courtney’s head. She simply let out an angry huff and crossed her arms over her chest. “Whatever,” she grumbled moodily, “If you guys wanna be porno actors, go-”

“Oh!” Bianca interrupted with a scandalized gasp. Turning back to Willam with wide, appalled eyes, she said, “Did you hear that? She’s attacking sex workers now!”

“Double cancelled,” Willam stated all too seriously. “Very disappointing.”

Shaking her head sadly, Bianca continued to mock Courtney with a sugary sweet, “You wanna go for a triple? Say something about women of color, too?”

It was here Courtney completely lost it. She sputtered out protest after protest, or rather that was what Alaska imagined those stuttered, half choked off words to be. Courtney didn’t seem to know where to begin, what to say, anything really to defend herself. It was as if her brain had short circuited and every time a thought appeared that she tried to vocalize, in just another second, it would disappear without a trace and she’d have to start again.

Willam and Bianca found the whole thing to be hilarious; they were now outright laughing at her frustration as she tried to speak. Alaska however felt a sense of pity...and just a hint of irritation. Her stomach had grown uneasy as the teasing had built up and now it was just downright annoying. They just didn’t know when to stop and poor Courtney looked like she was nearing tears as she tried to explain herself.

“That’s enough,” Alaska interrupted through the loud laughter. Her voice was steady and clear. Polite yet firm. Leaning past Bianca, she placed a comforting hand on Courtney’s knee and assured her, “We know you’re not homophobic, Court. _They_ just don’t know where to draw the line.”

She cast a pointed look towards both Willam and Bianca. The latter actually received quite a withering glare. Willam might be used to teasing Courtney like this but Bianca really ought to know better, Alaska reasoned.

Before withdrawing back to her seat, she offered a reassuring smile to Courtney. To her relief, Courtney didn’t seem as overwhelmed any more. She was able to return the gesture with a shaky smile of her own but she didn’t seem to trust herself to speak just yet.

Alaska’s glare seemed to have some kind of effect on Bianca, thankfully. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat then offered up a small apology to her roommate.

“It’s fine,” Courtney replied blankly, picking up her textbook again and trying to find where she last left off.

Alaska tried sending another glare down Willam’s way but she only rolled her eyes and pulled out her phone. Alaska gave a heavy sigh and shook her head. _Lost cause,_ she figured. But to her surprise, only a second or two after she turned her attention back to her laptop, she heard Willam saying in a shocking bout of sincerity, “Sorry, Court.”

It was reluctant, that much was clear in her voice, but she meant it. Courtney seemed equally as surprised by the apology as Alaska was. Her acceptance sounded rather stunned and amazed, if a bit cautious still. 

When Alaska glanced back towards Willam, she found her roommate staring at her with an odd expression. It was difficult to decipher but it almost looked...embarrassed? No, not quite that. Not ashamed, either.

_Contrite._

That’s what it was.

Alaska had actually managed to make her feel guilty for teasing Courtney. A feat that seemed almost impossible to the both of them. And yet here it was.

Willam’s eyes darted away for a moment but once they returned to watch Alaska, the latter gave her roommate an approving nod of her head before returning to her business. If Courtney would accept her apology, then so would Alaska. Though she couldn’t deny there was still some queasiness in her stomach...especially when her thoughts trailed back to Willam and Bianca’s kiss.

But those thoughts didn’t belong in Alaska’s head. Instead she forced herself to think about other things. It didn’t sound as if Courtney had completely forgiven Bianca yet. They actually remained quiet towards one another for another hour, even after Willam turned on the TV and traded loud, sarcastic commentary with everyone else.

But by late afternoon, when Courtney had gotten up to retrieve another drink from the kitchen and Bianca followed, Alaska had the chance to witness their true reconciliation. She was a bit suspicious that Bianca had followed so closely behind but she noticed that again, Willam seemed blind to it. She was so focused on the trashy reality show on the TV, Alaska doubted that even realized anyone had left the couch.

Craning her neck, Alaska was able to subtly watch her roommates talking in the kitchen. She couldn’t hear them but she had a guess as to what they were saying. Bianca looked truly apologetic, even a little upset herself, while Courtney’s gaze was focused solely on her drink. Her eyes seemed a bit sad and dull to Alaska.

She watched anxiously as Courtney lifted her gaze to look Bianca dead in the eyes. Then those magic words played out on Bianca’s lips; “I’m sorry.”

Alaska didn’t need to hear them to know that was what she said nor that she truly meant it. There was a tense pause...then a slow, bittersweet smile rose to Courtney’s lips. She nodded her head just so and said something back that set Bianca’s nerves at ease. Bianca visibly relaxed at what she had heard and pulled Courtney in for a hug. As it was returned, Alaska would swear she saw Bianca’s lips moving once again but what she could be saying, Alaska could only speculate.

Shifting back to the TV, Alaska tuned in again just in time to hear another one of Willam’s hilarious, if slightly ridiculous, commentaries. She laughed along with Willam, returned a jab of her own at the played up drama, and let herself relax with the newly restored peace.

******

The fear of midterms were now looming on the horizon...well, it was still like a month away but as Alaska found out all too dramatically freshman year, these kinds of things have a way of sneaking up on you. If you weren’t careful that is. 

Bianca was careful. Alaska was careful. Hell, even Courtney was somewhat careful. Willam though…

Alaska had yet to see her crack open a textbook for more than 10 minutes. Often she’d just pull one aside, sometimes open, sometimes not, and leaned over it with her phone in hand. She probably spent more time posting about studying than actually participating in it.

That frustrated Alaska. By now she knew all too well that Willam still had not chosen a major yet. She seemed to feel no pressure to pick out any particular field of study, or even just _to_ study. Her grades seemed decent enough...so what was the problem?

She knew it wasn’t any of her business but she felt some concern for her friend. She wanted Willam to do well. She knew she could, if she had the right motivation. That was why Alaska kept reminding her about midterms, hoping she’d take the hint and finally look at her textbooks. But Willam’s only response was a carefree shrug, maybe a small noise of acknowledgement, and then she’d go right back to staring at her screen. 

All of this would cause Alaska to groan in frustration but she wasn’t ready to give up just yet. She kept reminding Willam of the upcoming exams and finally Willam agreed to accompany Alaska to the library. Unsurprisingly, however, she failed to bring a single book or a laptop with her.

While Alaska diligently took notes from her psychology textbook, Willam scrolled through Instagram, chuckling to herself and trying to find the best light for selfies.

Well, at least she got Willam through the door. That was some kind of progress, right?

After about two hours or so of being bent over her textbook, Alaska stood up to stretch, and Willam immediately perked up. “You done?” she asked gleefully, “Wanna go out? It’s two for one margarita night at Twist.”

Alaska shook her head, chuckling.

“I don’t think midweek margaritas are the best choice for me,” she said. As Willam’s expression fell into a pout, she added, “But I could go for some coffee. Wanna walk over to the café?”

“Yeah, I guess that’ll do,” Willam said, standing up and helping her gather her things.

By the time they finally sat down at the cafe with their lattes, Willam was practically dancing in her seat.

“Have you checked Instagram?” she asked giddily, blue eyes sparkling.

“Oh god, what have you posted?” Alaska asked, picking up her phone. She opened Willam’s story, and soon found herself scrolling through multiple selfies, followed by an elaborate, goofy stop motion story of two of her own highlighters going camping under a dictionary. The second to last frame was a shot of Alaska herself looking up from her notes.

_‘You’re not taking a picture of me, are you?’ she asked, head tilted. An animated crown gif sat atop her head, the foreground filled with fat adorable bunnies rolling around._

_‘Of course not!’ Willam said._

_The last shot was Willam, flipping the camera back to herself and giving a mischievous, lopsided grin._

“You’re so dumb,” Alaska laughed, shaking her head.

“So, you liked it?” Willam asked, smile spreading across her face. 

“Yeah, very creative,” Alaska said. 

Willam was beaming by now. A perfectly happy smile that even reached her eyes. It was cute, Alaska realized, _Willam_ was cute. Impulsively, she then leaned forward and planted a kiss on Willam’s mouth. Her finger tucked itself under Willam’s chin for just a moment before pulling back.

The first thing she saw was Willam’s comically widened eyes; she was in a state of complete shock. “What...what do you...I-” she stammered, and Alaska giggled.

“Calm down,” she assured her roommate, “I’m not asking you to marry me.”

Willam let out a braying laugh at that. “Touché, bitch.”

With that goofy grin back on her lips, she leant in for a kiss of her own. Each could feel the other smiling into the kiss. Willam could’ve sworn she must have been drunk or fallen asleep back in the library in order for this to make sense. But every brush of Alaska’s fingertips across her bare arm or the feel of the material of Alaska’s skirt in her hand as it traveled up her thigh told her it was no dream.

Pulling away, just enough to speak, she suggested in a low voice, “Car?”

Alaska’s nod was immediate and in seconds they had grabbed all that they brought and were rushing back to the parking lot. They had the small presence of mind to relocate to the back of the lot, far away from where most cars would usually park, but following that, there was hardly a rational thought left between them. The hook up was messy and quick, neither of them getting any more undressed than necessary. Part of it was fear of being spotted, most of it was simply impatience.

It took very little for either of them to get worked up. Between the frantic, sloppy kisses, the desperate pawing to remove just some of their clothes, and the drunken high of just being able to touch one another...it was all over much too quickly. Their hair and clothes were in an absolute state by the time they managed to separate themselves enough to realize what they had done.

“That…” Alaska began, “That was something.”

“Yeah,” Willam agreed vacantly. Her mind felt elsewhere. She knew there were things to ask, things to be discussed but it was so hard to think right now. Not just because of the after-sex buzz but also because she truly and genuinely happy right now. She didn’t want to shatter that illusion, not yet.

“I had no idea how much I needed that.”

Willam let out a huff of a laugh. “Really?” Alaska nodded. Her lips curled into an almost self-conscious grin. It was kind of adorable, Willam had to admit. Scratching the back of her head, she commented airily, “Well, anytime.”

Alaska’s eyes lit up with cautious consideration. “Yeah?” she inquired.

There was a loaded pause. Willam could hear the blood pounding in her ears. As much as she tried to ignore it, something in her felt giddy and overexcited. She wouldn’t have thought Alaska would consider this to be more than a one time thing and yet…just maybe...“Yeah,” she finally confirmed, keeping her voice level and steady.

That seemed to be all there was to say for the longest time. Each was slowly coming down from their high and trying to sort out the mess that was their hair and makeup. Or at least Alaska was. Willam still felt in too much of a daze to care at this point. 

She remained lost in her thoughts until Alaska ventured, “We...Should we tell the others about this?”

“No-Yes! I mean...eventually, yeah, we have to but for right now, maybe just-”

“Our little secret?” Alaska proposed with a sly grin.

“Definitely,” Willam agreed with relief in her voice, glad to be on the same page. She really wasn’t sure how she could even explain this to their roommates. But that was a problem for another day.

She figured that’d be the end of this, at least for now, but Alaska managed to completely shock her by saying, “I really don’t want this to be the only time though. Is that okay?”

Willam’s heart was racing. She looked at Alaska long and hard trying to find any trace of this being a joke. She couldn’t get her hopes up like only to have them dashed away. But Alaska looked sincere, honest...She really wanted this…As casually as she could, Willam forced out, “Um, sure. Whenever.”

The smile she received shot straight through her soul. She was absolutely fucked and she knew it.


	4. Chapter 4

‘Whenever’ turned out to be a mere four days later and from then on became a regular thing. Far more regular than Willam would have expected. The liaisons were kept discreet...well, as discreet as they could be in semi-public places. They never quite dared to try hooking up near the dormitory. That was one of their unspoken rules. But elsewhere on campus? _That_ was fair game.

More often than not they used the library or its parking lot for their clandestine meetings. Neither Courtney nor Bianca seemed to suspect anything when Willam regularly began accompanying Alaska to study at the library. And in truth they did just that...for about an hour or two until trailing fingertips made it a little too far up someone’s thigh or a flirty grin tossed all logic out the door.

It was a thrill for Alaska.

She never really considered herself much of an exhibitionist but the thought of keeping such a forbidden and well kept secret, even while in public where they both would push the boundaries, just did something for her. She loved the excitement of trying to hide in plain sight. Loved that drunken feeling of power she received whenever Willam’s eyes would glaze over as Alaska slipped a hand slipped beneath her skirt while they studied at the table or the way Willam would clamp a hand over her mouth and her eyes would screw shut as she tried not to moan out too loudly in the bathroom.

And when Willam would crash her mouth to Alaska’s, drinking in all her moans as she brought her to the edge? Especially when someone else had just entered the bathroom? 

It was like a drug, and she began to crave more and more.

Recently, however, they had moved some of their trysts to the campus gym. Admittedly, Alaska had been less than thrilled about this idea, especially after learning that Willam expected her to actually work out as well, but the opportunities the locker room offered? Well, those were more than worth it.

Specifically, it was the shower stalls that were worth it. Spacious with a double set of privacy curtains and a near constant supply of hot water? It was perfect.

They could take their time, really explore each other’s bodies and foot traffic was far lighter than Alaska would have expected. Perhaps that was why Willam thought of it.

In here, Willam felt more at home, more comfortable taking her time. The same aggression she used with men would rear its head and Alaska loved it. She’d been shocked the first few times she and Willam had hooked up in the library or anywhere else. Based on what she had overheard when Willam brought company back to the dorm room, she expected Willam to be more active and confident during sex. She certainly had no problem telling men what she wanted them to do for her. But with Alaska, she was quiet, docile even. Her actions were hesitant until she got into the groove of things.

It was surprising, to say the least.

But here, where the gym must have felt like a second home and Willam firmly decided that she was the one in charge. She felt comfortable in her skin and knew just what she wanted to do to drive Alaska crazy. And they certainly had the time and space for it.

They could fully drink up the beauty that was each other’s bodies. Slowly peel away the layers of clothing and touch bare skin. They were free to grasp onto one another, often resulting in accidental scratches or bruises but there was something so attractive about those. Though Alaska tried to keep herself looking presentable and any marks easily hidden, Willam wore hers with a strange kind of pride. Not that she ever hid them before, that is.

Often, at least once every session, Alaska would have to remind Willam to be careful about leaving evidence. She loved to focus on Alaska’s neck, in part because she was so sensitive there to begin with, but even though Alaska ached to let her continue, before too long she’d have to remind Willam to move on.

Usually there’d be a noise of reluctance before complying but every so often Willam got it in her head to really push the limits. She’d move of course, but only a few inches to nip at Alaska’s collarbone. It hardly seemed possible but she was even more sensitive there than her neck. Willam would distract her by slipping a hand between her legs, teasing her until she couldn’t think straight and could barely muffle her moans. Alaska could feel her smiling against her skin, even as her nails dug into the skin of Willam’s back or sides but Willam didn’t care. She loved getting Alaska worked up. Loved breaking the composed facade.

But the reality of having to explain that mark to Courtney’s persistent questioning would always set in and Alaska would be forced to gasp out a shaky, “Stop.” She always obliged at that point, a smug little grin to boot, and would move on to play with Alaska’s tits instead but one day she had another plan.

She dropped to her knees and placed a series of slow, methodical kisses all along Alaska’s thighs. Alaska had been suspicious, but the fingers working inside her pushed those thoughts to the back of her mind and she let herself succumb to the pleasure. She wasn’t sure how long they had stayed like that. It felt like hours yet still too short all at the same time. It was like time had no meaning for her. All she could think about was how good Willam’s fingers felt, then her tongue, and...God, what she’d give to not let this end so quickly.

It was only after they had finished and a few hours passed that Alaska realized what Willam had done. Several sets of darkening bruises could be seen on her inner thighs later that day. She hardly dared to wear skirts until they had disappeared. So easily the skirt could shift and they’d be seen. She could barely keep them hidden from Bianca while changing! She was sure Bianca had seen them at least once but to her relief, did not question it.

Willam looked proud as ever. Kissing them gently during their next liaison, smirking up from her position once again on her knees. Alaska was not so forgiving. She kept a tight grip on Willam’s hair. Never before had she been so rough but Willam loved it. Loved every minute of it. Even loved the desperate scratches that appeared on her arm shortly after when it was her turn and Alaska was fucking her relentlessly as she leaned against the bathroom stall...and again in the car for good measure.

Her forearms, back and thighs were littered with scratches by the time they were done and Willam _reveled_ in them. True, they weren’t very deep but they were noticeable enough for Courtney to comment on the next morning as they dressed for classes.

“Where’d those come from?” she asked with a yawn in her voice.

“Where do you think?” Willam replied smugly, her lips curling even as she tried to bite her tongue from saying anything more incriminating.

Courtney paused for a minute. Her sleep-addled brain always made thinking in the early morning a bit too difficult until she ate but after a few seconds the implication finally struck her. “Oh!” she said slowly, “Better put some ointment on them though. There’s quite a lot.”

******

“Alaska!” Willam exclaimed, seeing her pass by the door with her laundry hamper.

“Yes?”

Willam jumped up, grabbing a large bag of laundry from her closet and leaning in the door frame with a charming smile.

“How’re ya doing?” she asked sweetly.

Alaska narrowed her eyes slightly, clearly suspicious. “Fine...why?”

“Well…” Willam said. “I’m about to have an appointment, and I was just wondering if you’d mind tossing my clothes in, too? Pretty please?”

“What kind of appointment?” Alaska asked as she put a hand on her hip. She already had a guess though.

“The kind that pays well,” Willam boasted. Seeing as her roommate was not quite convinced, she offered, “I’ll buy you dinner.”

Alaska sighed. She really had no desire to be complicit in Willam’s ‘business endeavors.’

“Please? I wouldn’t ask but I’m like...dangerously close to running out of underwear. I already had to buy more this week.”

“How long is this...whole _thing_ gonna take?” Alaska asked, nose wrinkled.

“Just an hour...or two,” Willam assured her, ever so sweetly. All that was missing was a hand over her heart.

Alaska however was not so convinced. But it was hard to say ‘no’ to that earnest, puppy-dog look in Willam’s eyes. Sighing, she relented, “Fine. But you’re helping me sort and fold once you’re done.”

“Deal.”

******

An hour and a half later, Alaska found herself checking her phone. Clothes should be ready to go in the dryer by now, she figured. Part of her wondered why she even stayed in her room for this. She knew Willam had her appointment, even had a good idea of what she was likely to be doing during it...what she didn’t plan on was being able to actually _hear_ anything.

True, there wasn’t much to listen to. For the most part things were quiet from Willam and Courtney’s room...at least at first. Then Alaska heard the first moan filtering in from the hallway. Her eyes went wide for half a second and a certain heat began rising to her cheeks. After that she buried herself in her textbook, then her phone, then her laptop. Just something to keep her distracted and not focused on making out all the little noises echoing from Willam’s room.

At last she dug around for her earbuds and defiantly settled in on her bed to listen to one of her favorite podcasts. It worked surprisingly well and Alaska was able to block out the growing number of moans down the hall. The only trouble was when she had to go move their clothes from the washer to the dryer. She wasn’t about to carry down her laptop with her just for that; she usually didn’t even take her phone with her!

But it was a quick walk from her room to the front door. Easy enough.

Then again things never were that easy for her.

As she scrambled around to find the correct change for the dryer, Alaska chanced to hear a bit more of Willam’s session. There was no doubt she was louder than before, almost certainly she was close by now. Alaska’s mind flashed back to all of their liaisons and all the faces she knew Willam made whenever she was teetering right on the edge. She mused over just what Willam might look like right now...eyes glazed, hair ruffled, maybe that cute flush on her cheeks?

Nope. She was not gonna think about that.

Grabbing a handful of quarters, Alaska resolved to just figure it out later and rushed to exit the dorm room. At last she found some peace and quiet, if only for a few minutes.

Moving all the clothes from one machine to the next didn’t take nearly as long as she had hoped. Not even with the extra care she took to pull and sort each of the bras. Her fingers tapped impatiently as the machine whirled to life and finally after an extra 10 minutes, just for good measure, she resolved that certainly by now Willam must have finished whatever she needed to with her...appointment. And as she drew closer and closer to her front door, she felt a surge of relief that nothing could be heard from inside this time.

But when she reentered the apartment, nothing could have prepared her for the sight she found waiting for her in the kitchen. Willam was standing there in what Alaska could only assume was her typical dress for one of these sessions; a barely there bra and panty set. The getup left nothing to the imagination as it hugged every curve of Willam’s body, from the see-through lace of the unlined bra to the strappy little thong that could have doubled as floss. All of it was a beautiful sky blue that perfectly complemented the tanned skin it rested on.

Alaska felt her face heating up as her eyes raked over every inch that she could see. Willam didn’t seem to notice her at first; she was too busy drinking one of her supplemental smoothies. These kinds of sessions always left her feeling drained by the end of it but not in a way that she would prefer. Her routine as of late was to drink one of the smoothies as she recovered from her little workout and then she could continue where she left off after her client had closed the chat. Not always but sometimes. Once they had logged off, she’d be free to get herself off at her own pace, if she wished to do so. 

Something she learned rather quickly after agreeing to these little peep shows was that the guys would almost always finish long before her. Even if she tried to speed things along with a vibrator or dildo, something always felt off with the intense way that they would stare at her. They always looked more attentive than when they were chasing their own release. It wasn’t that she was uncomfortable with it but she just felt a bit more exposed that way. It was much easier to fake an orgasm at the same time they did and let the show wrap up sooner. Plus the ego stroking for the fellas usually ended up bolstering her bank account as well.

But as of late, particularly during her sessions this past month, other thoughts would creep in when she ought to only be concerned about her client. Thoughts of certain lithe blonde she may or may not wish was right there with her. Imagining her fingers skimming down her body, running gently over the lacey trim, teasing her through the fabric. That mischievous glint in Alaska’s eyes every time she went down on her, so slowly, so calculated. All to drive her insane with anticipation.

The more she thought about it, the more worked up Willam got. She hadn’t even realized her mind had wandered off in that direction again during this last appointment. She only just remembered her client in time to fake her climax alongside him. But as she forced herself to stop, to end the session politely, she could feel that ache deep in her core, begging for her to continue, to chase her release as she chased those thoughts of Alaska. 

After her client exited the chat, Willam shook her head free of those thoughts. As best she could, anyway. She needed to calm down but her entire body felt so on edge. A fear worked itself in her head that in such a frazzled state, nothing short of Alaska herself would be enough. But they couldn’t just go breaking their ‘no dorm hookups’ rule, right? Even if Courtney and Bianca were both out for the next few hours or so. Even if Alaska was just down the hall...waiting for her to finish...waiting for Willam to join her.

 _In the laundry room,_ she reminded herself, _Just for the laundry._

Sighing, she closed her laptop and pushed aside those dangerous little desires. All she needed to do was calm down a little, get herself off, and then those desperate thoughts would disappear. Just clear her mind and go about her normal routine. 

She thought nothing of wandering into the kitchen as is to make herself a drink. But what she hadn’t expected to find, however, as she looked up from her smoothie, was Alaska staring at her with such a hungry look in her eyes. Her pupils were blown wide and a light flush was beginning to settle on her cheeks. Even Willam felt a hint of color rising to her face, along with a rather proud smirk.

“How’s the laundry coming along?” she asked a little too innocently, leaning forward against the counter. She toyed with the straw in her glass, circling it against the rim before raising the drink back up to her lips. That look on Alaska’s face was simply too much. She just couldn’t _not_ have fun with it, it wasn’t in her nature.

Alaska’s mind was decidedly blank for a moment as it tried to make sense of the question she was just asked. Snapping her eyes back to Willam’s, she subtly cleared her throat and answered, “It’s fine. Almost done. Maybe 20 more minutes?”

“Mh-mm,” Willam hummed distractedly as she pretended not to notice the way Alaska’s gaze was starting to drift back to her chest. Cocking her head to the side, she asked, “Whatcha gonna do till then?”

Alaska felt her throat beginning to tense as she replied vaguely, “I was listening to a podcast...probably just keep doing that.”

“That’s it?” Willam teased, setting her half-finished drink on the counter. “Doesn’t sound very entertaining.” Walking towards Alaska, she suggested thoughtfully, “There’s other things you could do...or _we_ could do.”

There was a slight nod to Alaska’s head as she agreed vaguely, “Yeah…” It was getting harder to focus on Willam’s words. She was far more interested in letting her eyes travel over the barely clothed body in front of her. Not that Willam seemed to mind too much. She had that little extra bounce in her step and over-confident smirk on her lips, much like when she would return home after a satisfying end to a late night of partying or after a session with a particularly well-paying client.

“Like it?” Willam asked, now barely more than a few inches separating her from Alaska.

Nodding her head again, Alaska tried to keep her voice steady as she answered, “Yeah. The color...it looks good on you.”

Twirling a piece of hair between her fingers, she purred, “Was gonna take it off soon…”

Now it was Alaska’s turn to smile. She allowed herself one last chance to drink in the sight that laid in front of her before stating, “Good. And after you change, you can come help me fold the laundry.” Willam’s face immediately fell and Alaska couldn’t help but taunt, “Not letting you off that easy.”

“Damn.”

******

The walk down to the laundry room was tedious and annoying. Or maybe it just felt that way because Willam still didn’t have a chance to get herself off yet. She just felt so wound up after her session and then seeing the effect on Alaska?

It was like the ultimate power trip.

But before she had a chance to touch herself even a little, Alaska insisted that they head back to the laundry room to sort and fold the clothes. Even when she tried weaseling out of it by asking Alaska to just bring the laundry upstairs didn’t work. Alaska had rightfully called ‘bullshit’ on her suggestion but it was far from the reason she assumed. Willam wasn’t trying to be lazy (well, anymore than she already was), she just wanted a few minutes to herself. Was that so much to ask for?

Alaska however insisted that she put on some clothes and follow her to the laundry room. She wanted to fold the clothes while they were still warm and as she pointed out, the best place to do that was in the laundry room. They had a multitude of tables set up for just that purpose. “And besides, with two people, it’ll go a lot faster.”

Willam grumbled and dragged her feet as Alaska cheerfully led the way. To her dismay however, there was still a good 11 minutes left on the machine’s timer.

“Can’t we just take them out now?” she asked impatiently as she stared at the little digital screen in front of her. 10 minutes now.

Alaska just chuckled and shook her head. “No,” she reasoned, “They could still be damp.”

“So? They can air-dry!”

“It’s only 10 minutes,” Alaska reiterated with a patient smile, “Not that long.”

“Then can I go back upstairs until it’s done? I-”

“No,” Alaska said simply, “I know you well enough by now that if I let you leave, you’re not coming back.”

Willam was exasperated and at the end of her rope. “I promise I’ll come back,” she said. “I just need to finish doing something.”

“It can wait,” Alaska stated firmly. “If you stopped to have a drink instead of doing whatever it is you wanted to do, then it can’t have been that urgent.” Her arms were crossed and it was clear she wasn’t budging on the issue. “10 minutes, then we fold. It won’t even take us a full 20 minutes, I bet.”

“Liar,” Willam muttered as she leant back against the machine. Seems she really was stuck here. Probably for another half hour at least. She wished she had brought her phone. At least that would have provided some distraction. Alaska had the good sense to grab hers and was lazily typing away.

Shifting on her feet, Willam tried to make herself more comfortable. The machine was still shaking which made it hard to get a good purchase at first but then...she struck gold. When angled just the right way, she found herself a suitable distraction. The vibration wasn’t anything mind blowing but it was something. It gave her that little bit of relief that she craved. Enough that she could let herself slip inside her own headspace and enjoy herself.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t for long.

“Having fun over there?” Alaska asked. Even before looking at her, Willam already could imagine the little smirk on her face and the amused arch of her brow.

“Shut up,” she whined, “Like you’ve never done this before?”

“Not in public,” Alaska noted with a distinct air of skepticism.

“It’s not...completely in public,” Willam argued half-heartedly.

“Mh-mm, right.” Alaska rolled her eyes. “Can’t believe you’re still this hard up after your...you know.”

Struggling to follow Alaska’s train of thought, or her own for that matter, Willam just muttered, “What?”

Sighing, Alaska reminded her, “Your appointment? I heard you a few times while you were-”

“Eavesdropping on me?” Willam interrupted with a laugh in her voice. “Maybe I should charge you for that.”

“Please,” Alaska replied, rolling her eyes again. Still though, a little smile was tugging on her lips. “You were _loud_. It was hard _not_ to hear you. _That’s_ why I started listening to the podcast in the first place.”

“Whatever you say, Lasky,” Willam beamed right back at her. She continued to shift against the machine, trying to find a better angle without much luck. It was getting very frustrating.

“But seriously, how are you still this wound up?”

A helpless, defeated laughter passed from Willam’s lips as she admitted, “Cause I didn’t, I mean, I can’t...I can’t cum when they’re watching me. Not like that.”

“What? Really?” Alaska’s jaw dropped just slightly. “It sounded really...real. Like whenever we- you know what I mean.”

“Yeah. I’ve gotten pretty good at that. My one special talent is faking it,” She said with a note of bitterness and frustration to her tone. “That or sucking dick.”

“Will,” Alaska scolded, sternly staring her down as she stepped closer.

Huffing, Willam confessed, “It’s easier just to fake it for them and get the session to end sooner. After they leave I can just get myself off without thinking too much...but I haven’t gotten the chance to do that-”

“Cause I made you come down here with me?” Alaska finished for her.

“Yeah,” Willam agreed. She was at the point where she was ready to just give up with the dryer. The shaking wasn’t anything near what she wanted- no, needed- and it was just getting annoying now. Her body was itching to finally get its release but she just couldn’t satisfy herself. It made her want to kick the machine for getting her more worked up than she already had been.

Alaska was standing in front of her, arms crossed and giving her a serious once over. She felt so small standing like this; a hot, horny mess, barely able to keep herself together and whining about how she couldn’t get off. It was fucking pathetic.

She supposed if she really wanted to move, she could have just side-stepped Alaska. She almost did just that until she saw her roommate reaching into her pocket for something. Willam hadn’t the foggiest idea what it could be at first but soon she saw Alaska withdrawing a quarter and popping it into the coin slot behind her.

“A few more minutes won’t hurt,” she said to Willam’s unspoken question.

Did she really want to watch Willam try to get off by leaning against the machine? Maybe she was right- she should have charged Alaska for this. 

A rush of heat worked its way through Willam’s body, much like it did before when Alaska was staring at her in the kitchen. But despite that surge of power, she knew this still wouldn’t work no matter how many quarters she slipped into the machine. A rueful grin worked its way onto Willam’s lips as she said regretfully, “It’s not enough, Lask.”

“There’s other things you could do,” Alaska reminded her with a wicked little grin as she crowded Willam against the machine. “Or that we could do.”

Another huff of laughter escaped Willam as she recalled her own words not 10 minutes ago. She lifted her hands to rest on Alaska’s waist, taking note of the snail’s pace in which her roommate was leaning in. Her brain felt close to short circuiting as she teased, “Oh, yeah? What do you suggest?”

Alaska merely smiled and diverted her course from Willam’s lips right to the side of her neck. The touch was so light at first but all the same it made Willam gasp. A trail of slow, delicate kisses extended from one side of neck to the other but it just wasn’t enough. Her body felt on edge as each brush of Alaska’s lips sent a little jolt of pleasure down her spine. She was shamelessly arching into Alaska for more but Alaska just pushed her back against the machine.

It was torture. No matter how Willam moved or squirmed against Alaska, she just couldn’t find that one perfect position. Between the attention to her neck and the vibrating of the machine behind her, she was quite literally trapped between a rock and a hard place. Alaska seemed more than content to continue working Willam into as much of a mess as she could. She left one hand on the dryer to steady herself as the other traced along Willam’s outer thigh. Thoughtless little patterns were drawn along her skin but they never quite reached where Willam ached to be touched.

Admittedly, Alaska was having quite a bit of fun with this. She knew doing this in such a public, heavily used space was well beyond their usual brand of ‘Bad Idea’ but she loved that bit of added danger. The thought that someone could so easily walk in and see them got her excited, too, even more than when they’d hook up in the locker room or at the library.

And possibly her favorite reason to continue was one that was so simple; she loved watching Willam fall apart in front of her. To see that air of confidence she always had around guys be so easily stripped away. To watch her turn into such a whiny, needy mess. It was intoxicating.

And before long that was exactly what Alaska got to see. Willam was writhing against her, trying desperately to ease the ache between her legs and whined into Alaska’s ear. “Please,” she breathed out.

Alaska took pity on her and stepped away. Willam was beginning to complain but Alaska shot her look telling her to just wait. She rushed over to the open door of the laundry room and kicked out the rubber stopper. As the door swung shut behind her, she returned back to Willam, kissing her deeply for a few moments.

“Keep an eye on that door,” she told Willam, “If it starts moving, warn me.”

There was a dazed nod of Willam’s head as she agreed and watched Alaska sinking to her knees in front of her. This was better than she could have hoped for. Already her legs were shaking in anticipation.

Very carefully, Alaska spread Willam’s legs apart and pushed up the edge of her skirt. Her lips fell open as she took in the sight before her; those same sky-blue panties as earlier. Willam stared down at her with a pleased little grin as fingers began to toy with strappy edges. But instead of taking them off right away, Alaska chose to kiss the area around them. She dragged her lips across Willam’s thighs, teasing her until she was squirming in place.

“C’mon, Lask. Don’t make me wait anymore.” Her voice was high and whiny, just the way Alaska loved it.

After a few more kisses and a taunting lick here and there, Alaska’s fingers finally hooked around the elastic and pulled the panties down in a quick, sweeping motion. Willam managed to pull one foot free of the material before she felt Alaska’s mouth back on her. There was little time wasted now and immediately Willam’s head fell back. She had started to gasp when she felt Alaska pull away.

“Watch the door,” she said.

Willam nodded and turned her attention towards the heavy wooden door. It hadn’t budged an inch to her relief. Satisfied, Alaska shifted her focus back to eating Willam out like it was her job. She dragged her tongue along every inch, stopping to suck every so often or hum softly against her partner’s lips. One hand was kept on Willam’s thigh, keeping her firmly in place while the other alternated between fingering her or rubbing against her clit. 

Anything Alaska could give, Willam simply wanted more. She was struggling to keep her voice down, even simple phrases were being broken off as she felt another moan about to rip through her throat. Everything that Alaska was doing to her just felt amplified; whether it was from having to wait so long, from getting so worked up beforehand or merely because it was Alaska, she didn’t know nor did she care. It just felt so perfect right now. Her eyes darted back and forth from the door down to the beautiful blonde between her legs.

Alaska’s eyes shone with amusement as she worked Willam closer to the edge. She was hanging on longer than Alaska thought she would but that just pushed her to rise to the challenge. She wanted to see just how much Willam could take before losing it...

The fingers brushing against Willam’s inner walls crooked just slightly as she sucked on Willam’s clit and before she knew it, Willam was shaking and writhing against her. A hand flew to cover her mouth but Alaska was sure she heard the beginning of her name falling from Willam’s lips. Her eyes screwed shut for a few seconds as she rode out her high. Alaska remained on her knees, working Willam through her orgasm and more importantly making sure she stayed steady on her feet.

Willam was grateful for that. It’d been a long time since she came that hard and her knees felt like they’d been reduced to jelly. Her brain was foggy and scattered but the one thing she did recognize was the goofy little smile on her face as she watched Alaska pull herself up.

The moment they both were steady, Willam pulled her in for a deep kiss. Just something to show how grateful she was and how much she enjoyed it but without so many words. “Should do that again sometime,” she whispered against Alaska’s lips.

“Thought we already do,” Alaska countered with a chuckle.

“I mean here,” Willam said, rolling her eyes. “It was fun. Better than the locker room.”

They shared another quick peck, Alaska crowding Willam against the machine which had long since stopped shaking. “Maybe you’re right,” she conceded. Her fingers trailed along the curves of Willam’s waist as she offered, “Or maybe we could try something up in our room next time.”

Shocked and delighted, especially as a few ideas of what to do came to mind, Willam inquired cautiously, “Yeah?”

“Mh-mm...we could wait till Court and Bianca are gone...have some fun. You know, make a night of it.”

Willam could barely contain her grin at the suggestion even while her heart was fluttering away in her chest. A million ideas flooded her mind, ranging from the absolutely filthiest, raunchiest desires she had to even some embarrassingly sweet and near romantic ones. She was nearly bouncing in place as the excitement began to overtake her. “I’ve got some toys I think you’ll love,” she offered up coyly, “We can have some real fun with those.”

“Sounds like a plan. Now...let’s get to folding.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Link to chapter 4 in Off Limits- https://archiveofourown.org/works/27201197/chapters/68332918#workskin


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we see you dartmouth420! thank you so much for all your lovely feedback and support! see if you can spot the cameo in this and the final chapter ;P

“Bill!” Courtney’s voice rang out from their bedroom. “Can you please come in?!”

Willam paused her work with the curling iron and sighed heavily and dramatically. Alaska, who was beside her with a straightener, laughed at her expression. “Better go see what she wants…”

“Ugh. She’s being so needy today,” Willam complained, turning off the curler.

“She’s probably nervous,” Alaska reasoned, reminding Willam for the millionth time why she was a better and kinder person.

Willam hit the back of her head with some hairspray, fingers roughly tousling the curls, and then headed into their bedroom to see what Courtney’s problem could possibly be this time.

“I was in the middle of doing my hair, idiot. What do you want?”

Courtney sat on her bed, still wrapped in a towel, breathing in a way that told Willam she was panicking. “I...I’m sorry. I just don’t know what to wear.”

“It’s a club. Wear something sparkly. Why are you freaking out?” Willam rolled her eyes, pawing through the clothes on Courtney’s bed to find something that wasn’t completely hideous.

“No, I know, but...I don’t want people to think I’m straight.”

“They won’t.” Willam grabbed her hand, gesturing to her shiny, short red nails.

“Wait, is red like a lesbian color or something?” Courtney’s brow furrowed, confused.

Willam laughed. For such a smart girl, Courtney could be a real dingbat.

“Yeah, Courtney, red is a lesbian color. Hey Bianca!” Willam caught her attention as she walked past their open door. “Come tell Courtney about how red nail polish is a secret lesbian bat signal.”

“What the fuck are you talking about? And why aren’t you dressed?” Bianca barked. “We said we were gonna leave a half hour ago.”

“Bill’s helping me,” Courtney explained.

“Courtney’s worried that she’s gonna wear a heterosexual top and piss off the natives.” Willam tossed her a silver halter dress. “Here, try this.”

Bianca heaved an exasperated sigh and leaned against the door frame with a strong air of impatience. “If you’re so freaked out, you don’t have to come. We’re not trying to convert you.”

“No, I wanna come!” Courtney insisted. “I just...don’t want to look out of place.” She dropped her towel to pull on the dress and Bianca quickly averted her eyes. “This dress feels a little short, Bill.”

“It’s not that short. I’ve worn it and I’m taller than you,” Willam told her.

“Yeah, but you’re a ho,” Courtney said, fluttering her lashes innocently.

“Ha, good one!” Bianca laughed, then put on a stern face and added, “Hurry up!” before flouncing out.

“Calm down, bitch! Goddamn. Someone’s real anxious to check out the local pussy, eh?” Willam said, bringing Courtney two pairs of shoes that would be acceptable with her outfit.

Courtney gave a weak laugh, struggling to give the illusion of cleavage in Willam’s dress. Willam took pity on her and helped make the necessary adjustments. Not that there was much to work with.…

“Do you really think she’s gonna be looking for…” Courtney trailed off distractedly, “I mean, I thought we were all gonna hang out together.”

“I’m sure we will. At least until she finds someone to bang.”

Courtney shifted uncomfortably, and once again, Willam felt a little bad. She was clearly out of her element.

“Calm down. We’re gonna have fun.”

Courtney’s face melted into a bright smile. “Of course we will!”

******

Willam could honestly not give a shit about the live band in the club. The lead singer sounded like every other whiny emo edgelord she’d ever heard. But Courtney seemed to think they walked on water - raving on and on about how good they were. Willam diligently tuned out her roommate while she drained several cocktails. By the time the DJ took over, she’d worked up a delightful buzz. She perked up when one of her favorite songs came oncomes up, heading happily to the dance floor.

Before long, she’d lost sight of Courtney and Bianca. She shrugged, assuming that they were off somewhere together. She chuckled to herself at the thought of Courtney unknowingly cockblocking poor Bianca. At least Alaska was still here, doing her very best impression of an alien imitating human dance moves.

She grinned, slinging an arm around Alaska’s waist and leaning in to tell her, “Your dancing is even shittier than your taste in shoes.”

Alaska threw her head back adorably as she laughed.

“We can’t all be as gifted as you,” Alaska replied, dark eyes flashing under the lights.

“Mmmhmm…” Willam continued to roll her hips, arm still casually around Alaska’s waist.

She was definitely tipsy, and more than a little lightheaded. As the crowd pressed in around them, pushing them closer together, Willam realized that this was the first time they’d really been so close out in public, at least where everyone could see them. She found her eyes drifting up and down Alaska’s slender frame, bass pounding in her throat, skin becoming flushed as she reveled in the closeness. Her heart hammered faster and faster as their hips moved in sync.

When Alaska tilted her head and gave Willam a lopsided smile, Willam felt it warming her up from the inside. She returned the smile, one hand settling in the small of Alaska’s back and pulling her closer.

To Alaska, it all seemed to happen in slow motion. One second, they were dancing and giggling and having a grand old time. And the next, Willam was inching her way towards her, lips parted and glossy and luscious. And every thought of why this was a terrible idea slipped from Alaska’s mind.

Their lips grazed together for a moment, both of them just breathing in the other person but when Willam tried to deepen it, Alaska suddenly pulled away. Her heart was pounding in her ears and all the thoughts of how fucking stupid this was flooded into her mind. 

Why had she let Willam do that? Their roommates were there at the club with them! They could’ve seen them!

Willam’s brow furrowed, confused, and Alaska immediately began stammering out an explanation.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I just don’t think this is a good-I mean Courtney and Bianca are right there, and I…”

As she spoke, Willam’s features dissolved from confusion into irritation. She heaved a sigh and put a hand over Alaska’s mouth. “Calm down. I wasn’t asking you to marry me,” she spat out.

“No, I know, I just...I’m sorry.”

With an exaggerated eye roll, Willam shrugged her shoulders and shifted her eyes, scanning the dance floor.

“Willam-” Alaska began, wishing she wasn’t all fuzzy-headed from alcohol, wishing she could give a better explanation.

“It’s fine,” Willam said, still not looking at her. “Don’t make it into a Thing.”

Alaska nodded, tucking her hair behind her ear. She could kick herself--especially given what Willam had confessed about her sexuality, and how vulnerable she’d been when explaining why it was hard for her to approach girls. But she didn’t have the words to make it better. She could tell that Willam’s ego was bruised, and decided not to push it. Not tonight.

“I’m gonna go find Courtney and Bianca,” she announced, seemingly to no one, since Willam waved her off, already dancing with someone new.

God, they both fucked this up so bad.

******

Alaska made her way through the apartment to her bedroom door in the dark, pulling her keys out and trying to unlock the door quietly. She’d taken a bit longer than she’d intended at the bar - the result was that she was a lot drunker than planned, and she assumed that Bianca was already asleep.

As she tip-toed to the dresser for her pajamas, she tripped on something on the ground. Looking down, she saw a silver dress, one she had definitely seen only a few hours prior. She looked over at Bianca’s sleeping body, and only then noticed a very familiar blonde head next to hers on the pillow. Her eyes widened. She tried gathering her things more quickly, snatching the covers and a pillow off her bed to sleep on the couch, when Bianca’s eyes opened.

“Hey,” she called out quietly.

“Hey, uh, sorry, I’m just grabbing some shit and then I’ll get out of here-”

“Why? You don’t have to-”

“I mean, you’re obviously in the middle of some-” Alaska said, and Bianca shook her head vigorously.

“No, it’s nothing like that!” she insisted. “We were just talking and she fell asleep here. You really don’t have to go, my guess is that she’ll be passed out until noon.”

In her sleep, Courtney shifted, wrapping her arms tighter around Bianca and letting out a breathy sigh.

Alaska paused a moment, struggling to think clearly, before saying, “Yeah, it’s cool. I’ll just sleep on the couch.”

“Alaska!” Bianca hissed, continuing to insist that nothing was going on, but Alaska waved her off, dashing out of the room as quickly as possible.

******

Alaska was, uncharacteristically, the first one awake the next morning. She’d forgotten to close the living room curtains, so the morning light hit her in the face, and after that going back to sleep was impossible, even when she burrowed under the covers. She groaned in frustration. She just could not win, it seemeds.

It was a few hours later when she noticed Courtney padding softly from her bedroom, clad in an oversized Mardi Gras t-shirt, holding a bundle of last night’s club attire.

“Morning…”

“Lasky!” Courtney stopped short. Her eyes glanced at the state of the couch before asking guiltily, “...did you sleep here?”

“Yeah. I didn’t want to intrude on whatever...you guys had going on.”

“Oh no, I’m so sorry!” Courtney flew over to the couch and settled in beside her.

“It’s okay. How’d you sleep? I can’t imagine Bianca being very warm and cuddly.”

“She was alright,” Courtney said, cheeks going slightly pink, scattered glitter from last night’s makeup glinting all over her face. “Nothing happened, by the way.”

“Uh huh. That’s what she said. I didn’t really believe her, though.”

“Do you believe me?” Courtney asked. “Because nothing...nothing happened.”

Taking in the clear note of disappointment in her voice, Alaska reached forward and tucked a blonde curl behind her ear.

“It honestly doesn’t matter what I believe. As long as you’re good.”

“I’m good,” Courtney said. “I just feel so bad that you slept out here. You could have had your bed. Or my bed!”

“It’s fine,” Alaska laughed. “Besides, there’s never any way of telling what kind of creature Willam’s gonna bring home from the club.”

“That’s true...” Courtney giggled. “Anyway...I’m sorry.”

“It’s really fine, I promise. Sleeping on the couch is not the worst thing that happened to me last night. Not by a longshot.”

As if on cue, the door to Willam and Courtney’s door swung open, and Willam marched straight into the bathroom without saying a word. She didn’t even look over at them.

Fuck. Had she heard all that?

Alaska put a hand to her head. She was hoping that today, they’d be able to forget all about the awkwardness at the club, but apparently that was too much to ask for. The universe was definitely against her today.

“Are you okay?” Courtney’s voice was full of concern, a hand on Alaska’s shoulder. “Did something happen? Do you need to talk-”

“No no, don’t worry,” Alaska assured her roommate with a rueful smile, “I’m just being dramatic.”

“Okay.” Courtney nodded. Before getting up, she pulled Alaska in for a tight, fierce hug. “I’m here if you change your mind.”

As she left, Alaska flopped back down with a sigh.

******

It wasn’t like Willam to hold a grudge. Not over something as small as a kiss. Not even a full kiss. An almost kiss.

But it wasn’t fair. It wasn’t fair that she had to be the one to feel like a jerk. She wasn’t the one who made it weird. She wasn’t the one in denial. What made Alaska so goddamn innocent, anyway?

To be honest, she’d probably have dropped the whole thing quickly if Alaska wasn’t walking around looking at her with those big brown puppy eyes. As if _she_ was the one who’d gotten rejected. Ugh. She just wanted to kick something! A trash can or a gym locker.

But of course, there was a point when even Willam grew tired of spending money. When even Willam couldn’t take any more cardio as she ranted to Manila about her horrible night. When she had to finally go home and face the music.

******

Alaska was pissed. At first, she thought it was a little funny - coming home to a pair of tights on her bedroom door, Courtney’s moaning clear as day through the wall. But as the hours ticked by and she still couldn’t go into her room, she started to get annoyed. It was almost 9 pm. What were they doing in there? They couldn’t _still_ be going at it, right?

When Willam entered in her workout gear carrying an armful of shopping bags, she must have had a face like a storm cloud. Because in spite of barely saying two words to her since the other night at the club, Willam stopped in her tracks.

“What’s wrong?”

“I’ve been sexiled,” Alaska complained, gesturing to the black tights. “It’s been hours.”

“Oh. Well, good for her,” Willam chuckled.

“Yeah, it would be fine, if I could have gone in and gotten my stuff. At this point, I’m assuming that she expects me to sleep out here and I don’t even have my toothbrush,” Alaska whined. “And I’ve been sitting here since 6 pm in my freaking jeans. In my own dorm room!”

“Then go get your shit. It’s tights, not an electric fence.”

“Well--” Alaska hesitated. “I don’t really want to interrupt. I just want her to be considerate.”

“Oh my god. Where’s your key?” Willam picked up Alaska’s purse and rummaged through it, pulling out her keys. “ _I’ll_ interrupt.”

“Uh…” Alaska supposed that this would be the right time to tell Willam exactly who she’d be interrupting. But she couldn’t help feeling wildly amused at the thought of her getting an eyeful.

“Bianca!” Willam yelled, banging on the door. “Tell whatever slut you’ve got in there to cover up, we’re coming in!” She unlocked the door and flung it open.

“Fuck me dead!” Courtney shrieked, grabbing a pillow to cover her naked body. 

"That's so Aussie!" Alaska giggled, then paused and added, "Isn't it?"

Willam looked back at Alaska, mouth hanging open, eyes wide, and Alaska couldn’t help chuckling. Though she did try to be just a little courteous and covered her mouth to keep from all out laughing.

“Did you know it was _Courtney_ she was fucking in there?” Willam asked, still shocked, and Alaska nodded shamefully.

“Yeah. Sorry. She’s kinda loud.”

“Huh…” Willam tilted her head thoughtfully. “Not with guys.”

“Excuse me! Is there a fucking reason for this invasion?!” Bianca barked.

“Yes, asshole. Alaska’s been sexiled out here for hours and she needs to get her stuff.” Willam beckoned Alaska forward, assuring her that it was safe to enter.

“Shit,” Bianca muttered, having the good grace to look at least a little bit ashamed of herself.

“Omigod, Alaska, I’m so sorry!” Courtney exclaimed, catching sight of the clock. “I didn’t realize what time it was-”

“Clearly,” Willam said. “Get whatever you need, Lask. You can have Courtney’s bed tonight.” She shook her head, still a little stunned at this turn of events. “I assume that’s okay with you, you fuckin’ whore?”

“Yes, of course!” Courtney said, then laughed giddily as Bianca pulled the covers over their head. 

Alaska busily collected an armful of stuff--toiletries, pajamas, her pillow, a couple of textbooks for her classes tomorrow--hoping to get in and out quickly. The way Courtney now giggled softly under the covers told her that Bianca wasn’t waiting too long to get started again.

“Goodnight guys,” she said, dashing from the room without looking back over her shoulder.

“Goodnight!” Courtney sang.

“One word of advice, Bianca...be careful. You know that thing about koalas and chlamydia...she could be patient zero…” Willam ducked as Bianca flung a shoe across the room at her, letting it hit the door. “Hey, I’m just looking out for your health!”

“Go!” Bianca hollered, and Willam stuck her tongue out before shutting the door firmly.

“Jesus fucking Christ,” she grumbled, still wrapping her head around everything, not just that Courtney and Bianca were now a thing, apparently.

“Could’ve been worse,” Alaska offered as she dropped her belongings onto Courtney’s bed.

Incredulous, Willam asked, “How?”

Shrugging, Alaska offered a small smile and replied, “They could’ve been hooking up in here.”

******

It was a little weird. They’d barely spoken for two days, and now suddenly they were roommates. Willam, for her part, was acting totally normal. And while Alaska was grateful, she still felt a need to kind of clear the air. Brushing everything under the rug just didn’t feel right. Not with her.

Before calling it a night, Alaska called out into the darkness, “Hey, Will? Are you awake?”

“Yep.”

“I just want to say that I’m sorry. About the whole thing in the club-”

“It’s fine,” Willam interrupted. Her voice was rushed and clipped. Embarrassed, Alaska could tell. “Sorry I was a cunt.”

“You weren’t,” Alaska insisted.

“I was,” Willam laughed. “But thanks.”

Alaska turned to her side, trying to make out Willam’s form in the quiet, moonlit room. “I really care about you. And I think I just kind of freaked out at the thought of losing you...as a friend.”

Willam turned in her own bed, facing her with a curious expression. “Well, you’re not gonna lose me. I’m a ride or die bitch.”

Alaska smiled to herself, but even that proclamation wasn’t enough to assuage her fears. “You know...I thought my old friends were ride or die. Especially Jinkx. When we broke up, we swore we’d stay friends, but it was so hard. I’m not blaming her, either, it was hard for me too. I guess...when I first told her that I was leaving, part of me thought that she would tell me to stay. But...I never heard anything after that. From her, or any of our friends. Even up to the last week, I was kind of prepared to change my flight and go back there.”

“I’m gonna be honest with you, Lask. They sound like a bunch of fucking assholes,” Willam said.

“They’re not,” Alaska sighed. “But thanks.”

“And for the record, that would never happen with me. Unfortunately for you, I think you’re kind of amazing. So you’re basically stuck with me forever.”

It was hard for Alaska to see Willam in the dark bedroom. To see how her eyes were a little misty. To see how, under the covers, she pulled nervously at a thread on her pillowcase. Nevertheless, and in spite of Willam’s acerbic tone, something in her told her that this was Willam at her most sincere. Her heart felt like it was slowly being pried from her chest...like it wanted to escape somewhere...somewhere in the direction of Willam.

“Thanks, Will,” Alaska said simply, adding, “Ditto.”

Willam made a small noise of approval, turning over onto her back.

It wasn’t a perfect reconciliation, but it was a start, and Alaska was just fine with that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Link to chapter 6 in Off Limits- https://archiveofourown.org/works/27201197/chapters/69510360#workskin


	6. Chapter 6

Another night spent not in her own room but Alaska didn’t mind as much any more. Willam made for good company to talk to before falling asleep, something Bianca was never all that interested in. During their late night conversations she let down almost all of her walls, whatever were left at this point. She often felt exposed or vulnerable even, but at the same time really safe with Willam. It was an odd combination...but it was nice. The only interruptions that were not so welcomed were the little noises escaping hers and Bianca’s room...or was it now Courtney and Bianca’s room?

Usually Alaska could tune them out but some nights...they were just plain loud. It was awkward overhearing them...even more so when she realized that they were having some kind of an effect on her. It made her ache to have another body next to hers...not just for sex but maybe...something else too. She wasn’t sure if this was just loneliness acting up again, perhaps plain horniness, or maybe something more but her eye was turning back to Willam.

She shook her head clear of that thought more than once. It wouldn’t be fair to either of them to resume that relationship...not right now...so why did it look more and more appealing every day?

Ugh. She just wanted to bury her head beneath the pillows until all these thoughts went away.

And Willam certainly wasn’t making things any easier for her.

Her exhibitionism was still in full force, stripping in front of Alaska without a care in the world. Walking around the dorm room half or fully naked whenever she pleased. It was like the universe was teasing her...or maybe it was just Willam doing that.

But either way, she often had to tear her eyes away before too long, before Willam would catch her staring and bring up some questions she’d rather not answer. Tonight was exceptionally difficult; she was wearing that sky blue bra and panty set, the same one she had worn for her webcam appointment just a few weeks ago. It taunted Alaska, hugging every curve of Willam’s body as she got ready for bed. Riding up just so as she bent over or stretched for something atop her dresser.

Alaska couldn’t help but wonder if Willam had a similar appointment earlier that day or if she was just wearing it because she wanted to. Her mind kept flashing back to the last time she saw the outfit, how the material felt between her fingers as she pushed the panties to the floor. But before she could disappear too far into her headspace, Willam turned around and caught her hungry gaze glued to her body.

Caught like a deer in headlights, Alaska apologized and looked away. A distinct thought, or rather prayer, appeared in the back of her mind about how grateful she would be for a giant chasm to suddenly open up and swallow her.

Willam, however, quite enjoyed the reaction, much like she had all those weeks ago. She felt powerful, sexy...in control.

She sauntered over to Alaska, cocked her head to the side and asked if something was wrong. It might’ve sounded innocent if that taunting little smirk she wore hadn’t proved otherwise.

“Nothing,” Alaska assured her, keeping her eye firmly connected with Willam’s. “Just noticed you had this on again...Did you have another appointment?”

“No, just like wearing it,” she smiled at her. Her eyes were taunting Alaska, daring her even. She placed her hand on the mattress, almost but not quite touching Alaska’s thigh, and leant in closer. Her voice lowered to just above a whisper as she recalled, “I remember what you said the last time you saw it. You loved how it looked on me.”

Trying her best to maintain her composure, Alaska shot back, “I said the _color_ looked good.”

Unconvinced, Willam merely grinned, and rebutted, “I can read between the lines.” She pushed herself onto the bed and sat in front of Alaska with that playful, teasing look on her face that she was so accustomed to wearing. Willam so deep into Alaska’s personal space it would have only taken a light pull for her to be settled into Alaska’s lap. Both of them were painfully aware of this fact but only Willam was making the moves to turn that thought into a reality. “You still like it, don’t you?” she simpered.

Alaska’s eyes finally dropped down to the body in front of her. As they roamed over the exposed skin, she heard herself admitting, “Yes.”

“Thought so,” Willam noted smugly. As much as it annoyed Alaska, it also sounded so damn attractive right now. She missed hearing that tone. But then suddenly, Willam was shifting in place again. She was leaning in even closer, enough to share the same air, their lips only inches apart. Willam’s gaze drifted down to those pouty, plush lips before her for just a second. Then she forced herself to look deep into Alaska’s eyes as she made her tentative proposal, “You know...we could always resume our arrangement. From before I mean.”

Excitement creeped into Alaska’s voice as she asked, “Yeah?” then settling back down, she worried, “But...isn’t it weird now?”

“Not if we don’t make it,” Willam assured her. “What do you say?”

For an answer, Alaska simply closed the gap between their lips and wove her fingers deep into Willam’s hair. She had missed this so much, she realized. It just felt right being with Willam like this again. And if she had to guess by the enthusiasm Willam injected into the kiss or the eagerness in the way she pushed Alaska down to meet the mattress, she’d say Willam missed it all just as much as she had.

*******

After renewing their physical relationship, it was surprisingly easy to settle into a nice routine. They were careful to keep their activities hidden from Courtney and Bianca, though Alaska had doubts those two would’ve noticed Armageddon beginning outside their window whenever they got it into their heads to start fucking. But at least it meant she and Willam didn’t have to be totally quiet.

As expected, Bianca and Courtney had begun spending most of their free time together. There were still group activities, like spending a night out in town together, but for the most part, Willam and Alaska were left to their own devices...and each other. They were pretty okay with that arrangement.

They were able to talk, share things. Really just get to know each other in a deeper manner after their little falling out just a few short weeks ago. It felt good to be so close again. Alaska even introduced Willam to Jinkx via Facetime.

“Not what I was expecting,” Willam admitted as they ended the call. She flopped down on the bed and stared up at the ceiling.

“Oh?” Alaska teased, laying down next to her, “Well, what were you thinking she looked like?”

“Not so much looked like,” Willam mused, “Just...she seems really sweet and nice...She still cares about you,” she noted softly, almost sounding bitter.

“I told you that!” Alaska reminded her with a laugh. Her nerves were feeling rather frayed at the moment. She was glad the meeting went well but she felt so on edge...nervous and frazzled.

“I know, but I thought…”

“Yeah?”

“I thought that was just you being you,” Willam explained in a miserable groan. She really hated admitting she was wrong. “Like, I thought you were just trying to make her seem nicer than she actually is. Cause you always try to see the best in people, you know? And I expected her to be kind of a bitch but she wasn’t and-ugh, I don’t know. She’s just...not what I thought she was.”

Alaska let out a soft noise of understanding and scooted in closer to Willam. “She really is nice,” Alaska said, “And our breakup wasn’t really anyone’s fault. I know I told you some of this before, but it’s the truth. We just got too deep, too fast and when we realized we weren’t as right for each other as we first thought, it got intense and overwhelming.” Alaska sat back up and pulled her phone back into her lap. Jinkx’s contact information was still on the screen, earning a bittersweet smile from Alaska. “I had to leave and take some time for me, cause I never really did that before. I kind of acted like a baby about it. I just expected her to know everything about me and what I wanted when I should have just been honest with her. And that wasn’t fair...After we reconnected, I realized that I didn’t even know as much about her as I thought I did. Funny, huh?”

Here, Alaska paused and looked back to Willam. She was watching her with a curious expression, patiently waiting for her to continue. A little jolt of warmth spread through Alaska’s chest. Without a second thought, she locked her phone and tossed it aside. 

Settling back down on the bed, she added in, “But I’m glad I came here. I got to learn new things about myself, what I want, all that sappy bullshit.” Willam let out a small laugh and shifted onto her side to better face Alaska. “I mean, you helped with that. And if I hadn’t acted like a baby and stormed off after our break up, I wouldn’t have met you. So I’m kinda grateful for that. And I can see now that we really are much better as friends. She gets me in a different way than most other people and that’s why we connected in the first place...but after coming here and meeting all of you, I know that that kind of relationship is best just as friends, not anything more.”

“Gross,” Willam laughed. “You really are sappy.”

Alaska simply beamed back at her. She was glad she was able to be this honest and she knew deep down, Willam appreciated it too. It was just her way to deflect and make a joke of it. “And don’t worry,” Alaska added in, nuzzling into her neck to place a gentle, quick peck, “You’re nice, too. More than you think.”

******

The semester seemed to fly by for Alaska; there was so much going on in her classes and her personal life that she hadn’t realized that it was almost time to pick her classes for the next term. She was diligent setting up a meeting with her advisor and browsing the course catalog beforehand but the same could not be said for Willam. 

She dreaded this part of the semester like no other, particularly this time around. She was in her third year and still had no major, no direction with what she wanted to do in life. It was frustrating all on its own and of course, her advisor had to point it out every time they met. Not that they ever helped her pick anything. Willam had skated by so far with choosing general electives but that supply was quickly running out. After this semester, all that would be left were random, obscure classes that often ended up cancelled for lack of enrollment or...ugh...philosophy. 

Though Manila had tried to encourage her last year to give the intro course a chance, one review of the syllabus and reading list quickly sapped away any interest Willam might've had in the subject. Despite how carefully and enthusiastically Manila (and even Raja once) tried to explain their latest project topic, Willam just couldn't wrap her head around any of it. It'd only be another $3000 to add to her student debt and very likely, a failing grade to boot. What good would _that_ do her? 

She knew she had to pick _something_ soon but she still felt just as lost as when she arrived her freshman year.

But unlike before, there was something different this time around; she had Alaska to vent to. And quite unexpectedly, Alaska was actually able to help her make sense of things. Alaska’s previous advisors were actually quite committed to their role; they were active in guiding students in their decisions. Even Alaska wasn’t quite sure what she wanted to do her first year but after attending a few sessions with them and listening to their advice, she decided to combine her love of theater with her passion for the social sciences.

So she sat down with Willam and took a look at her transcript. Most of the courses she had taken were very generic; math courses, English composition, some of the hard sciences. Her grades were decent but nothing stuck out that she particularly excelled in, at least not until Alaska browsed over her courses from last semester and the current one. It was here she saw Willam actively engaging in a variety of subjects. They were all the intro courses to give students a taste of what the major is like without having to commit. Three of the classes she received excellent grades in, almost perfect from what the transcript was reading. Although one related class was still in progress and had no grade as of yet.

“Hey, Will,” Alaska asked, transcript on the laptop screen in front of her, “How’s this one going? ‘Digital Media and Advertising II’?”

“Oh, um, okay, I guess.”

She was drumming her fingers along her thighs and looked away when Alaska arched a brow in her direction. “Just ‘okay’?” Alaska inquired. “You did pretty good in the intro class last year. And some similar ones, too.”

“Um, yeah. They’re kinda easy. Just the kind of stuff you already know but don’t know you know. That sort of thing.”

“How have your tests and homework been looking so far?” Alaska pushed. Despite how evasive Willam was acting, she felt she was onto something with this. And once she got a look at Willam’s current grades, she was sure she’d have her answer.

“I mean, I think I’m doing fine. Hold on.” She ran back to her room for a moment and soon returned with a fat folder and notebook. Rifling through some of the loose papers, she pulled out her more recent assignments and even a test from last month.

As expected, Alaska saw they all had high marks. There was even a little note on one of her project grade sheets that commended her work. Smiling down as she read through each of the assignments, it was clear to her that this wasn’t just some kind of filler course. What Willam had was an actual, genuine talent in this field. It might seem easy to her, maybe even second nature, but for Alaska, who had no interest or experience with Advertising classes, all of these instructions and questions might as well have been written in Sanskrit for all she understood. But now she had to ask about the most important part; how did Willam actually feel about this?

“It looks like you’re doing better than ‘fine’,” Alaska joked, “Do you actually like these classes though?”

“Well, it’s still work,” Willam complained, leaning back into her chair, crossing her arms. “But it’s easy...fun sometimes, too.” She paused for a moment, collecting her thoughts and sorting through them at a relaxed pace. Alaska watched as she mulled over everything in her head. She didn’t want to rush Willam but she was anxious to hear her final answer. After about half a minute of debate, Willam grinned and said, “Yeah, I guess I do like it.”

Beaming back at her, Alaska declared, “I think you found your major then.”

“What? This?” Willam questioned, sitting upright once again.

“Yeah! I mean, just look at your grades so far; you’re a natural with advertising. I think if you talked to the professor teaching this, they’d say the same thing.”

Skeptical, Willam pulled all of her papers back in front of her and skimmed through her work. She just couldn’t believe she might actually have a talent for this. Shaking her head, she argued, “But this stuff is so easy, anyone could do it.”

“I couldn’t,” Alaska admitted, “Bianca might be able to but I think Courtney would struggle like me. It’s not as simple as you think, Will. I honestly can’t make heads or tails of this and I’m sure plenty of others can’t either. But it does make sense to you because you have a natural talent for it. That kind of thing can’t be taught.” Nudging Willam lightly in the side to pull her back from her headspace, Alaska encouraged, “I think you should try this out. You seem to like it and you definitely have a knack for it. Might be worth a shot.”

Sheepishly, Willam glanced between the papers strewn in front of her and Alaska’s supportive gaze. It was the first time since she began attending her that she felt like she had a real direction to go in. That there was something worth pursuing and she might even be good at.

A cautious smile worked its way onto her lips and with a soft laugh, she said, “Okay, I’ll talk to my advisor tomorrow and see what needs done.”

“Good.” Alaska might’ve said more but a pair of soft lips over hers erased anything else that might’ve come to mind.

As soon as they broke apart, Willam murmured, “Thanks, Lasky.”

“Anytime,” she grinned back.


	7. Chapter 7

The end of the Fall semester was fast approaching and soon it would be finals season once again. Although Alaska has been diligent in studying for each test as they appeared on the horizon, with so much coursework to review, it wouldn’t hurt to start refreshing herself ahead of time. Of course she roped Willam into studying with her. It was a mutual exchange this time around, they’d study and quiz each other on one block of material each session and only then would they allow themselves to have a little fun afterwards. It was much more controlled than their previous liaisons in the library. Back then it was so easy to get distracted and run off to the bathroom for a bit of privacy. But something about their hookups now felt more natural and relaxed, normal even, just a typical, expected part of their relationship.

Without a doubt they had become more laid-back with their self-imposed rules in their dorm room. They allowed their fingers to linger longer than they should have, flirty exchanges became routine in their conversations, even with Bianca and Courtney around, and of course, hookups in their actual bedroom were now commonplace. It made it so much easier to sneak around now that they were unofficially sharing a room. Courtney’s belongings had mostly found their way to Alaska’s old room (as Alaska’s found her way to Courtney’s) but neither ever truly expedited all of their possessions...just in case. No matter how unlikely it seemed.

But it was because Willam and Alaska had let their guard down so much that they made a very innocent, almost easily missed mistake early one morning.

Willam had just come back from the gym only 10 minutes earlier and was making herself a recovery shake. Bianca was already out the door and Alaska would be following soon after. She had already cleaned up after her breakfast as Courtney settled down to eat hers. Courtney’s answers were a little sluggish and dazed as Alaska tried to speak to her, so she resolved to just wait until this afternoon to resume their conversation. Willam, however, was wide awake as she came in so Alaska jumped at the opportunity to chat with her before heading out.

Courtney had been so quiet as she ate that Alaska forgot about her for a hot minute. Her eyes glanced to the clock above the stove and she announced she was about to leave. As she grabbed the backpack left leaning against the island counter, she asked Willam if she’d be joining her again in the library after her final class of the day. Distracted by pouring out her shake, she replied in the affirmative, then before she knew it, Alaska was at her side pressing a quick kiss goodbye to her lips.

On a normal morning, she would have returned the kiss but today was an exception...today they had an unexpected audience. One that Alaska remembered just a moment too late.

She was left speechless by the realization, her eyes cautiously connecting with Courtney’s own wide and amazed ones. Courtney’s gaze darted back and forth between Willam and Alaska as if trying to will them for an explanation. Alaska’s face felt like it had been placed in front of the sun and the only thing she could think of to do was run.

Guilt gnawed at her stomach as she backed towards the door. It was almost enough to make her stay so that she and Willam could face the music (and rapidfire questions) together. Almost though.

“I’ll see you later, Will!” she squeaked out, making her hasty exit.

Willam’s lips pursed as she watched Alaska disappear past the front door. _Lucky bitch,_ she thought, envious of Alaska’s quick escape, _Hope she trips, leaving me here with this mess._

As she shifted around to deal with Courtney, she found an exuberant grin like none other waiting for her. Immediately any desire to explain the situation quickly drained from her body. “No,” she declared firmly, taking a defiant sip of her smoothie.

Courtney, however, was undeterred. Her voice climbed in pitch as she let out a joyful squeal of, “Yes.”

“No.”

“Yes!” she exclaimed, eyes as bright and alert as her grin. “You and Alaska-”

“It's nothing,” Willam interrupted but nothing phased the other woman’s enthusiasm.

Ignoring Willam’s protests, she blurted out the most urgent questions that came to mind, “When did you-? How long- _H_ _ow_?”

Roughly setting her glass back on the counter, Willam explained through gritted teeth, “Just-It’s been a few weeks, okay?”

Another little squeal escaped from Courtney as she began, “You've been dating-”

“Wha-No!” Willam choked out. She knew she needed to take control of this conversation and straighten out this misunderstanding but how when her mind was coming up blank? The best she could offer was a flimsy explanation of, “We're just fooling around a little, that's it. We're _not_ dating.”

“Bullshit,” Courtney countered. Her arms crossed in front of her chest as her smile morphed into a skeptical, scolding frown. “You're telling me _that's_ not dating?”

“ _Yes_. We-she just got carried away. We are definitely not dating.”

Though Willam had managed to say that with all the confidence she could muster, in her heart of hearts, even she didn’t fully believe that sentence. She knew that she and Alaska had entered a very, very grey area of their arrangement but at the end of the day they were not in a relationship. Not like Courtney and Bianca were. _Just...friends with benefits with some stupid, fucked up emotions thrown in_ , she thought to herself.

And Courtney, especially after having known Willam so well these last three years, could call out her bullshit excuses with ease. “Liar,” she accused.

Standing firm, Willam looked her dead in the eyes and stated once more, “We're not.”

There was a loaded pause as the two women stared each other down. Neither was willing to relent on the issue. But after a few seconds, a little smirk came to rest on Courtney’s lips once more. Smugly, she challenged her best friend to answer, “Why're your cheeks so red then?” Willam gave a tense swallow, unable to say anything in defense of herself. And when her face darkened yet another shade, Courtney teased, “You _love_ her.”

“Fuck you,” Willam snapped back, “No, I don't.”

“Yes, you do,” Courtney cooed, her smirk stretching into another wide, happy grin once more. “You love, love, _love_ her,” she sang, much to Willam’s annoyance.

“Shut up,” Willam grumbled as she raised her glass up to her lips for a long, deep sip, wishing it would magically turn into tequila or something else equally strong.

“No. Now tell me _everything_.”

******

Hours later Alaska was sitting in the back of the library with her nose buried deep inside her textbook. She had high hopes that just maybe studying would prevent her from obsessing over that little incident this morning but so far, nothing has been able to distract her for more than five minutes. She even texted Willam as soon as she made it to her first class and apologized for leaving her there to face Courtney on her own. 

_‘We’ll talk about it later,’_ came the belated reply.

It was all Alaska could do not to groan out loud every time she reread the text. She was dreading what Willam would tell her as soon as she got here but also anxious and impatient about it as well. Then shortly after 3, Willam made her way to the back corner Alaska had holed herself up in. Immediate a look of guilt washed over Alaska’s face as she apologized once again. Willam collapsed onto the sofa beside her, silent and thoughtful. Her fingers drummed along the fabric of the couch as she tried to think about how exactly she wanted to phrase her thoughts.

She’d been pondering over this all day, trying to work out exactly how she felt and what she wanted to say to Alaska. After Courtney grilled her for explanation of their relationship, Willam felt she left that conversation with more questions for herself than answers she gave Courtney. There was a lot she and Alaska had been avoiding, especially since that incident at the club. But now the time seemed right (well, the universe forced it to be right) to talk about it.

Letting out a soft sigh, Willam admitted, “Well, I guess...I didn’t hate what happened.” 

Alaska nodded her head, desperately trying to search her mind for something more to say. There seemed to be so much that she wanted to ask, particularly about what Willam meant by that statement, but her mouth just couldn’t form the words. Not yet. So instead she simply asked if Courtney had in fact caught on, though Alaska was pretty sure she already knew the answer. 

“Uh, yeah,” Willam said with a self-conscious smile tugging at the corners of her lips. Trying her best to make it a little bit funny, she joked, “She’s not as dumb as she looks.”

“I’m so sorry, Will,” Alaska groaned, finally pushing all of her books aside. “I know we meant for this _thing_...to just be between us. I got really careless and now-If you don’t wanna do this anymore, I get it, I wouldn’t-”

“I...We-maybe it’s okay if it’s not...between just us, I mean. We were gonna have to tell them eventually so maybe...it’s fine that they know?”

“It is?”

Anxiously toying with the hem of her skirt, Willam babbled, “Yeah...Like I know you didn’t come here looking for a new relationship, especially after Jinkx, and I’m definitely not like, the girlfriend type anyways, but if-”

It was here Alaska cut her off with a deep but short-lived kiss. Willam’s jaw dropped a little as her mind went blank and she lost her train of thought. But where Willam’s mind failed, Alaska’s was running at 100 miles an hour.

“What if I do think you’re the girlfriend type?” Alaska challenged. Though her voice seemed so confident and assured, the same couldn’t be said for her stomach; it was now twisting itself into a Celtic knot as she awaited Willam’s answer.

Taking a deep breath to help collect her thoughts, Willam gave a slow, tentative question of “...What about Jinkx?”

“Who?” Alaska grinned back. 

Despite her attempt to make it sound lighthearted, Willam didn’t seem too convinced by her answer. Not that Alaska could really blame her...she’d already been hurt before and probably wanted to play it safe before completely putting herself out there again. No, if Alaska wanted this to work, she’d have to be completely honest, no matter how awkward or uncomfortable it made her.

Scooting closer until their knees were just touching, Alaska gave Willam a truly sincere smile as she began to explain, “Look, you’re right. I wasn’t looking for a relationship when I got here. I was pretty sure I didn’t want to date anyone again until after I graduated but after spending this semester with you...I’d have to be pretty stupid not to recognize a good thing when it’s right in front of me.” Carefully taking Willam’s hand into her own, she continued, “I mean, what we have isn’t perfect but it is worth exploring. I really-I care about you Willam...a lot. More than just sex. And I really wanna try this out...Slower this time than I went with Jinkx,” she added with a bittersweet chuckle, “But I wanna put in a real effort with this and see what happens.”

Willam was completely silent for a moment, long enough that a whole new set of nerves began to spread through Alaska’s entire being, then like a sudden break in a storm, a cautious grin was beginning to spread across Willam’s lips. Alaska let out a breath she hadn’t known she was holding and smiled back at her. “Really?” Willam asked softly. Her eyes were searching Alaska’s face for any sign of uncertainty but so far she had found none.

“Really,” Alaska assured her, leaning in to close the gap between them.

******

The rest of the afternoon was like a blissful blur with very little studying getting accomplished. Each was on their own natural high between the giggling and stolen kisses that thoroughly distracted them from any attempts to review their class notes. Eventually, they gave up entirely and found their way back to their dorm room. They crashed onto the couch into a snug little heap, turning the TV to some random channel as they remained solely preoccupied by just being with each other.

Their laughter and chatter drew Bianca out from her room in order to see what was so funny. She showed very little surprise as she walked in on the pair stealing yet another kiss from one another. Perhaps she suspected this all along or more likely, Courtney told her as soon as Willam was out the door this morning. Either way, her presence became known very quickly as she cleared her throat.

Chastened by their newfound audience, Willam and Alaska separated, at least enough so as not to be in each other’s laps. Alaska offered a slightly embarrassed grin while Willam provided a proud and smug one. Rolling her eyes, she laughed a little and told them, “Congrats, then.” Directing her gaze towards Willam, she noted, “Nice pull,” but to Alaska, she merely shrugged and said, “You could do better though.”

A throw pillow was immediately tossed at her head. A muttering of “Fucking troll,” could just barely be heard between hers and Alaska’s fits of cackling.

******

That weekend, Alaska and Courtney finally moved the rest of their belongings into their new rooms. Despite the fact they had already unofficially switched, it still felt like a big step. Big, but necessary. Alaska wanted to show that she was going to give 100% to her new relationship and to start, she wasn’t going to keep anything in her original room for a ‘just-in-case, break-glass’ scenario. It was going to be all or nothing for her.

Much to her surprise, Willam actually helped her put things away and reorganize so the space was just as much Alaska’s as it was hers. It took a few hours but the women were happy with the end result. The last act of the mini-move was to push their beds together. It didn’t make much sense at this point to keep them apart, not when they’d more often than not find their way to their partner’s bed anyway.

The one thing that troubled Alaska was what to do with their sheets and blankets. Neither would provide a perfect fit over both beds and simply piling them on top of one another to cover the missing space was bound to be stifling, especially when spring came around. Willam, however, had a plan. As a little surprise for Alaska, instead of just going to the gym that morning, as per usual, she went out shopping as well. She bought a king-sized leopard print bed set, complete with a new duvet cover that _almost_ matched Alaska’s original one. The key difference was that Willam had managed to find a print that suited her as well; this one came in blue and black.

It was the perfect compromise for both of them, Alaska had joked the minute she saw the set.

“So, we gonna christen these sheets or what?”

******

“What’s taking them so long?” Willam groaned as she modeled in front of the closet mirror one more time. Her flouncy little sundress was perfect for their brunch plans today, as were the matching sunglasses, but only if they even made it on time for brunch. At this rate it might well be dinner before they got to the restaurant.

Alaska was laying on their bed watching Willam swish the dress from side to side with a lazy, amused grin. So far, Willam had changed her shoes three times, touched up her hair and makeup twice and even swapped out her sunglasses to better match her purse as they waited for their roommates to announce that they were ready to leave. 

“Might wanna go check on them,” Alaska drawled out as Willam dug through her purse for her lip gloss yet again. With a mischievous little glint in her eyes, she added in, “Make sure they’re still dressed and all that.”

Another groan, this time of agreement, fell from Willam’s lips. “You’re probably right,” she conceded as she dropped her purse onto the bed. 

Before she could completely turn around to find out what was holding up Courtney and Bianca _again,_ Alaska caught her wrist and gently held her place. Scooting as close to the edge as she felt comfortable with, Alaska pressed a sweet, brief kiss to Willam’s cheek and reminded her, “ _Nicely.”_

“Yeah, yeah,” Willam muttered, though her grin was wide and giddy. “As nice as I can.”

With that, she slipped from Alaska’s hold and practically floated from the room while she tried to force an irritated expression back on to her face. Normally, she would have just barged in when _she_ was ready to leave and hover over the other women until they were dressed and ready to go. She’s learned pretty quickly that since Bianca and Courtney started dating, they tend to get a bit...distracted...if left alone for too long. However, with Alaska by her side, she’s tried to practice some level of patience...although, they were supposed to leave almost 20 minutes ago and Willam was _hungry._ Not to mention she wanted a drink, too. 

Swiftly opening their bedroom door with a loud bang, Willam demanded to know, “Hey, bitches, are we doing brunch or what?” Upon catching the couple yet again in a state of undress, Willam complained, “Oh my god, can you ever just _stop_?”

Seriously, this was like the 3rd time this month they were too preoccupied by hooking up to remember they were late for whatever plans they had made with Willam and Alaska.

Tossing a lazy arm across her chest (as if _that_ did anything to help cover herself), Courtney glanced over at the open doorway and offered a mildly apologetic grin, “Yeah, soz. We got distracted.”

There was a hint of a giggle in Courtney’s voice. One that immediately had Willam pulling a look of annoyance as she replied deadpanned, “Clearly.”

“Well...oops,” Courtney offered with a laugh. A happy, carefree grin stretching across her face until she took notice of Willam’s outfit. Her brow creased in confusion as she asked, “Bill, what are you wearing? It’s November.”

“Yeah, in _California,_ ” Willam retorted with a roll of her eyes as she slipped the pair of sunglasses resting atop her head down to her nose.

“You’re gonna freeze!” Courtney rebutted, trying and failing to keep the judgement out of her voice.

Bianca, however, couldn’t care less about Willam’s fashion choices. She knew full well that nothing they said would change her mind, at least not in this situation. To Courtney, she said complacently, “If she wants to freeze, let her freeze.” Then turning back to Willam, she remarked, “Give us 20 minutes to get ready.”

“You can have 15!” Willam huffed as she turned back towards her own room. They were already well past the time they all agreed to leave upon yesterday. Right before shutting the door behind her, she yelled back, “I want a mimosa, goddamn it!” 

*******

As soon as the couples were led to their cozy little table on the patio, Willam settled into her chair with a contented sigh. Though she’d never say it out loud, (she wasn’t Courtney, after all), this moment felt utterly perfect. The sun was shining, a light breeze drifted through every few minutes, the air was refreshing and filled with delicious, inviting scents, and Alaska was beaming back at her as they chatted away about what to order.

Oh.

And Courtney and Bianca were there, too. That was nice, right?

It was a Saturday like she only dared dream of.

While the lighthearted debate bounced back and forth, beneath the table Alaska and Willam had started a mini war of nudging each other with their foot. It started as an accident when Willam was trying to subtly and quietly scoot her chair closer to Alaska. To better hear her of course. When she had been satisfied with the distance, she went to cross her legs again, accidentally knocking Alaska's foot in the process. She gave a quick apology, thinking nothing more of it until a few seconds later, there came light nudge and all too innocent grin rested on Alaska's lips.

The miniature war evolved from there, each taking a turn to gently prod or bump their partner without being too obvious. Before long they couldn't even make eye contact without wanting to break out in a case of the giggles and instead buried their noses in their menus as if it were the most interesting and thought provoking thing in the world. They thought they were doing a good job of hiding their little game, until Bianca surprised them by clearing her throat loudly and asking, "If you two are done playing footsie, would you mind telling poor Michelle what you want to eat?"

Alaska’s head immediately shot up to find their server looking down at her expectantly, Michelle’s pen tapped rhythmically against her tablet as a patient smile remained poised on her lips.

"Sorry," Alaska said with a humble, apologetic smile, folding her menu and handing it over. “Huevos rancheros, please.”

Willam bumped Alaska one last time and withdrew her feet far away from where any retaliation could reach, before saying, “A garden salad and shrimp and grits. But no grits.”

An expression of deep confusion washed over Michelle’s face. Thinking about the order for a brief moment, she tentatively asks, “So...just shrimp?”

“Yes,” Willam said simply, offering no further explanation. 

“Alright. I’ll go grab your drinks.” 

“You know, the south would never allow that ‘no grits’ business,” Bianca said, face scrunched up in disgust. 

“I feel like the south probably isn’t too keen on a lot of things we do,” Courtney mused. 

“Fair,” Bianca laughed.

Michelle came back another minute later, tray loaded with drinks. Bianca began seasoning her Bloody Mary as soon as it was set down, and Willam drained her whole mimosa, signalling for another before she walked away. Almost as soon as Michelle had left, Willam felt a warm hand brushing up against her bare thigh. It slid higher and higher, tracing lazy little lines, swirling here and there, dragging her nails lightly against Willam’s skin. A shiver ran up Willam’s spine at the feeling but there was something warm and electrifying about the gesture too. 

Her eyes connected with Alaska’s after a few seconds and a flash of understanding swept through her. She dropped her hand into her lap, finding Alaska’s waiting to immediately lace their fingers together. Of course that was all she wanted. But she couldn’t resist teasing Willam...just a little bit.

A smile tugged at the corners of Willam’s lips while a familiar heat washed through her body in spite of the light breeze sweeping across the patio. They shared a brief moment of silence, each looking at her partner with a certain softness they usually wouldn’t show in public. Then a giggle echoed from across the table.

Willam expected to find Courtney and Bianca watching them. Courtney, giggling and about to say something about how cute they were together. Bianca, snickering as she rested her chin in her hand, eyes shining bright with amusement.

But instead, though perhaps not too surprisingly, they found the couple solely occupied by themselves. Courtney was now nestled in Bianca’s lap, Bianca had her arms wrapped protectively around Courtney’s waist as she peppered kisses up her girlfriend’s jawline. Disgustingly romantic, Willam decided but she wasn’t gonna say anything...this time.

She glanced back at Alaska, sharing a mutual look of ‘What are we gonna do with them?’ and burst out laughing. It was cut short, however, as Alaska captured her lips for a heartfelt embrace of their own. Each could feel the other smiling into the kiss, could feel the happiness lurking just behind the movements of their lips as if they wanted to shout to the world just how lucky and grateful they were to have found each other but finding the words unnecessary to share with anyone but themselves.

As they broke apart, Alaska felt her face flush as a goofy little smile stretched across lips. The sight immediately brought out another very special grin from Willam; one that Alaska had come to love more than anything after learning what it meant. This particular grin was lopsided, an illusion further accentuated by the slight tilt to the head Willam always wore with it. Her eyes sparkled with joy as they gazed deep into Alaska’s own. They seemed to be laughing, not at her but with her. About everything in that particular moment. Her lips stretched and contracted as if Willam were trying and failing to hide just how euphoric she felt. In short, this particular smile showed Alaska that Willam was utterly and truly happy.

And just knowing she was the cause of that filled Alaska’s heart with a warm sense of pride like none she had ever felt before. She truly felt like she was finally going about this relationship at just the right pace this time; not too quick nor too slow. Simply letting it develop and grow as it was appropriate for both of them.

A contented little sigh escaped Willam’s lips as she turned her attention to the fresh mimosa the server had just placed down for her. Unlike the first, she took her time enjoying this one. She took long, slow sips, letting her thoughts drift away to how utterly perfect the day was becoming. Eventually her eyes fell back to her other roommates. Bianca was sampling the Bloody Mary she had so particularly seasoned while Courtney remained comfortably nestled in her lap. She pressed one final kiss to Bianca's neck and scooped up her own forgotten drink as well.

Bianca and Alaska had started up some new conversation, each laughing about a comment that Willam had missed as she quickly checked her buzzing phone. But as she put her phone back down, she found Courtney watching all three of them with an all too familiar glint in her eyes.

"Ugh," Willam groaned in apprehension as she zeroed in on Courtney, "I know that look."

Gasping in mock offense, Courtney began with, "What look-"

Pointing her finger at Courtney, she accused, "You're gonna give a speech or-,"

"No!"

"-make a sappy little toast aren't you?"

Courtney let out a choked little noise, one of pure guilt to Willam's mind. Then a cheeky little grin spread across Courtney's face as she drawled out, "Well..."

"Knew it."

Alaska muffled her laughter behind her hand as she watched their little exchange. She already knew where this was going and waited with glee to see what would happen next.

"It's not really a toast," Courtney explained, glancing at each of the table's occupants. A thoughtful smile rose to her lips as she said, "I just wanted to say...I'm really happy we got to spend this semester together. And next, too. I can't imagine finding better friends, or roommates, than you guys."

"Gross," Willam grinned, taking another sip of her mimosa.

"I think it was sweet, Court," Alaska praised. Her smile seemed to double as her eyes connected Courtney's own misty ones. "I'm glad we get to spend this year together, too."

Bianca murmured a noise of agreement and whispered something into Courtney's ear. Something that left her giggling and pressing yet another kiss to Bianca's lips.

Willam's eyes rolled in very overdramatic fashion but Alaska could see her smile never dimmed.

Picking up and unlocking her phone, Willam surprised herself by suggesting they take a group pic. Courtney squealed in delight at the idea and immediately agreed. Bianca chuckled alongside her and helped her remain steady in her lap as she found a good angle.

Scooting closer to Willam, a knowing glint reflected in Alaska's eyes as she cocked her head and asked, "For instagram?"

"Of course," Willam replied with a smug smile, leaning in close as she adjusted the phone until Bianca and Courtney were in frame as well.

"What's the tag gonna be?" Bianca teased, struggling not to laugh as Courtney made a series of goofy faces into the screen.

Willam paused for a moment, not having thought that far ahead, but then a perfectly cheesy idea worked its way into her head as she readied her finger above the button. "CouplesGoals," she boasted, letting her finger tap down right as the rest of the group burst into laughter. It wasn't the most beautiful or even the most clear picture but it caught everyone's smiles and that was all that was needed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Link to chapter 7 in Off Limits- https://archiveofourown.org/works/27201197/chapters/70713369


End file.
